St. Thomas Church welcomes new pastor as it struggles to stock food pantry, despite surprise donation

AMENIA UNION — The Rev. A.J. Stack had no sooner stepped up to the pulpit at his new home at St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Amenia Union, when the church and its well known food pantry were hit by a tsunami of hungry residents needing help to deal with food insecurity during the coronavirus pandemic that has shut down much of the state.  

Following his Feb. 26, Ash Wednesday debut, the numbers at the Food of Life/Comida de Vida Food Pantry skyrocketed, starting on March 20, rising 107% to 374 clients by April 10, with higher numbers expected yet to come.

Rather than despairing, Stack instead marveled at the response of the church and the community. 

“The phone started to ring,” he said, as “word of mouth” brought calls from individuals and organizations “all over the place” wanting to volunteer to work or to help raise much needed funds.  

He said new volunteers, who can sign up on the church’s website, are needed because the pantry has quickly evolved from one where individuals pick the items most appropriate to their needs to a system where food is pre-bagged so it can be safely distributed while maintaining social distancing. 

With neither residential nor financial requirements and no questions asked, those in need are welcome to come weekly each Friday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. The ballooning needs have led to a budget shortfall as the pantry’s purchase of food from the North East Regional Food Bank has risen from 4,000 pounds to what Stack estimates will be a minimum of 10,000 pounds for April alone.

“It became very clear very quickly that most of our time was going to be spent making sure that we were doing everything we could to increase our ability to serve folks through the pantry,” he said. “There are so many more people who are hurting now. That’s where we have to focus our energy.”

Part of that focus means this former social worker from rural Ohio who “likes to have dirt under his nails” while working in the volunteer church garden that fills the pantry’s cooler, also likes knowing the work will benefit others. That’s what makes him an ideal match for St. Thomas and the pantry on which so many rely on so heavily.

“One of the things that is most heartening right now is that this is a perfect opportunity for folks to rediscover how important their community is for them,” he said. “At a time when we can’t even actually be in close proximity to each other, this is a time when community means more than ever.”

That is certainly important as Stack, who said he received “the warmest welcome he’d ever seen upon arriving… [what feels] like a century ago,” takes on critical responsibilities with his husband, Steven Huang, a conductor who is completing his work as a professor of music at Ohio University. The couple has two adopted sons, Brodyn, 7, and Brandon, 3. 

While thoroughly appreciating the generosity donors have shown so far, Stack is hoping more will step up to the plate at www.stthomasamenia.com/donate-html so the growing requirements can be met.

And on Wednesday, April 22, the pantry received what church Warden Jim Wright called an “unprecedented delivery of over 2,000 pounds of canned goods, and cereal and rice and beans — anything you can imagine.” The large donation was the result of a food drive by the Wassaic Fire Company.

Anyone who needs food but is not able to come to the pantry at 40 Leedsvile Road in Amenia Union should call the church at 845-373-9161.

To find a list of additional food pantry resources in the region, go to www.tricornernews.com.