Over the last month, however, demand has dropped. The center now plans to start its mobile pantry service months earlier than usual.
Christian Center of Park City Executive Director Steve Richardson said if people can’t get to the pantry, they’ll bring the food to those who need it. It’s a response to what the center believes is concern over changes to federal immigration policies.
“We had the most number of visits in the pantry last year,” Richardson said. “The scary thing is that has not continued over the last month and a half. A lot of our most vulnerable, most needy in our community are not coming right now to the food pantry. Talking to some other nonprofits, especially ones who focus in on the most vulnerable a lot of people are afraid to leave their homes right now.”
Richardson said they’re working to get the mobile food pantry up and running as soon as this week.
He said they won’t advertise the locations but will communicate with the on-site apartment building managers to let tenants know when and where they can safely go to pick up food.
“It’s a sad time that so many people don't feel safe, to be able to say, I need help,” he said. “They're not necessarily undocumented or anything. They're just unsure. They've heard too many rumors. They've heard too many people saying, ‘oh, this could happen to you, and that could happen to you.’ And so, our goal is to bring help to the people and not expect the people to come to us.”
There is also widespread fear about neighbors making anonymous tips to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) about their neighbors who may not have legal status to be in the United States.
“We're trying to be as careful as possible,” he said. “I know the managers are knowing. They know their people enough to say, okay, this person may not be the right person to tell, this person might be. Obviously, we have trained all of our staff members and will train all our volunteers before they go out on what's the legal protections, the legal rights, the right things to say, making sure that we're able to do everything we can to support and care for all those who feel vulnerable.”
While they hope to get those food pantry deliveries out as soon as this week, he said it is weather dependent.
