Rural food pantry sees membership spike during pandemic

A rural food pantry in Virginia has seen its membership spike in the weeks since the coronavirus pandemic has walloped the economy.

Fifty new families have joined the pantry’s list of about 800 members, pantry chair Dave Cryer said last week.

The food pantry is in Locust Hill on the Chesapeake Bay’s western shore and is operated by Hands Across Middlesex Interfaith Outreach.

Middlesex is a county of about 10,000 people, although the pantry serves surrounding counties as well.

“We’ve had more new people applying than we have in the last two years,” said Cryer, who is the organization’s vice president.

Cryer said the organization is blessed with a overwhelming number of volunteers and donations. It receives as much as 60,000 pounds of food each month.

“We’re so blessed with the support we have here,” Cryer said. “We probably have two volunteers for every one that we need.”