Marcia Antipa, American Red Cross Public Affairs

On a recent sunny, windy day Kristin Selway drove her van to a food pantry in the community of Bokelia on Pine Island, Florida, a partner organization with the Red Cross Community Adaptation Program. Kristin and her neighbors had just been hit by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, which swept through the region just two weeks apart.

Now, Kristin visited the Pine Island Food Pantry, housed in the church’s multipurpose room.  Kristin came to pick up groceries for herself and her neighbors.

“She’s 80 years old and has shingles, and her son is paralyzed from the waist down, so I run around and do errands for them.”

The food pantry has received support from the Red Cross Community Adaptation Program, or CAP. The program operates in 12 states across the country, partnering with hyperlocal nonprofit organizations that know their own communities’ needs.  The Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal leases the space to the pantry for just a dollar a year, and the Red Cross donated equipment to make it easier for the all-volunteer crew to keep shelves and grocery carts full.

"It was like Christmas!” says Bonnie Potter, President of the Pine Island Food Pantry. “We have been so lucky and blessed to have the Red Cross give us carts, shelving, and this year they’re giving us money towards a generator.”

That generator will help keep the pantry up and running in the event of another big storm.  On this day, just one week after the storms hit, volunteers quickly filled grocery carts with eggs, bread, soup and other staples for the clients that streamed in all morning.

“The clients, who are our neighbors on the island, are in desperate need of food and we’re so happy to help them and the Red Cross has been our partner and helped them right along with us. Our motto is ‘No One Goes Hungry.’”

Kristin, a lifelong resident of Pine Island, came through the storms with little damage.  But she still finds the pantry invaluable to keep food on the table.

“It helps a lot.  I only use it when I really need to and right now with fixing things up, I’m financially in a pinch so it helps a lot.”

If you would like to help those recovering from the hurricanes, visit redcross.org or call 1-800-REDCROSS.