Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative’s mission is to alleviate food insecurity in Whitehall and Coplay.

Our pantry guests are feeling the current economic pressures we all are experiencing. Food and gas prices, utility costs, rent, real estate taxes - everything is escalating. For people on fixed incomes, they are adjusting and making choices of what needs to be paid out first: rent, gas to get to work, utilities and then food.

This is also affecting the senior population. They are choosing between rent or taxes, gas to get to doctors’ appointments, medicine and food. In both scenarios, food purchases come last.

Second Harvest Food Bank has also felt the same food pressures. It is experiencing supply shortages, costs have escalated so it can purchase less with its budgets, and gas prices have escalated to deliver food to the pantries.

Second Harvest services 200 pantries in six counties, and all these pantries are seeing an increase in attendance.

WCHI is very fortunate to be working with Second Harvest. It provides at least 90% of the food we offer our guests. However, the selection of food has decreased dramatically. Second Harvest has not had cheese in several months, and many other staples are limited.

WCHI is doing our best to feed those in need. Food supply issues, rising food prices and other items mentioned above are also expected to take a while to return to normal.

I wanted to extend my sincerest gratitude to everyone who has donated food or organized food drives for WCHI. Everything donated has been made available to our pantry guests. They are most grateful WCHI provides a food pantry.

Many of you are unidentified heroes who drop or ship food items to my Re/Max Unlimited office, 1080 Schadt Ave., Whitehall, 18052. I often come to work, and there are many donations for WCHI. I do not know who is donating them, but I am most appreciative.

Note, I do not accept refrigerated, frozen or homemade baked items for food-security reasons. To see what we need, go to tinyurl.com/WCHIPantryList. We currently do not need canned vegetables.

Also, many monetary donations payable to WCHI are mailed to me at my office. Put in the memo section if you want this to be applied to pantry food or to our general account.

Recently, WCHI had to purchase several food items costing a couple thousand dollars to supplement the food we obtain from Second Harvest for our February food distribution. We are expecting many more people to come to our pantry in March.

Other community members are doing food drives with their friends, churches, businesses, youth groups, schools, etc. You can, too!

Register your food drive at tinyurl.com/WCHIdrive or contact me at 484-225-0358 if you are doing a food drive, just so I am aware.

Those who have recently provided food to our pantry in the last three months include Celeste Curatola Abruzzi and her family and friends; the Changes for Hair Salon team and clients; and Whitehall Township, organized by Melanie Pries.

Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church held four food drives, and Taylor Villas subdivision held two food drives.

Steckel Elementary School staff and students did a Souper Bowl drive that brought in 3,032 canned food items. St. Elizabeth Regional School also did a soup drive. Zephyr Elementary School staff held two food drives.

Even organizations outside of Whitehall are helping. Catasauqua Communities That Care held two food donations; Good Shepherd Catholic School, Northampton, held two food donations; and Lehigh County Boy Scouts of America Order of the Arrow collected 220 pounds of dog and cat food.

I sincerely apologize if I omitted any organized food drives or donations by mistake. All food and monetary donations from the community, large or small, are greatly appreciated and needed.

Thank you, everyone, and have a great week!