Another load of boxes from Amazon and the Army of Goods arrived today, and Kyle, as is often the case, was inside the pantry hauling it in, opening boxes, stacking them on tables, and figuring out where they go.

I’m hoping we can send messages of appreciation to Kyle.

This is the third big delivery in the past three days. Kyle and the other volunteers have been busy morning, noon, and night. The shelves have filled up, and I’ve never heard one complain.

Before joining the Cambridge Food Pantry team, I wanted to understand the physical demands and the complexity of running a pantry. I had no idea.

Community is essential in my small rural town, and I’ve come to see these dedicated and committed people as heroes. The pantry couldn’t run for a day without them.  They are quiet and hard-working.

They often tell me they know what it’s like to be hungry.

Pantries are complex.

They face bureaucracies, the rising cost of food, the unpredictably of donations, the dependence on subsidized food banks that set their own rules, the vagaries of farm crops,  and the many physical challenges of gathering food, the red tape, strict rules, and bureaucracies, the challenge of keeping food fresh, checking it for allergies, etc., keeping meticulous track of all foods and items, and dealing with people who face all kinds of pressures, uncertainties and too often, shame and depression.

When people arrive seeking food support, they have little or no idea where the items on the shelves came from; they know they need them urgently.

Given the many restrictions and paperwork some pantries impose, it is tough for the people who come there to depend on strangers for food. The Cambridge Pantry works hard to make them comfortable and keep their dignity.

It’s hard being poor. It’s often hard to help poor people.

What makes it work for the Cambridge Pantry is the small army of dedicated people in the community who act as drivers, cooks for fund-raising meals, people who unload trucks,  drive hours for food donations, stack shelves, store foods, clean up, open boxes, catalog hundreds of foods daily, clean up, clean stoves, stack boxes for recycling, stock items on the shelves, greet visitors, register them, listen to them, help them, wash dishes and sweep.

People like Kyle.

The work is complex and challenging, and the pantry needs these volunteers to function. They work hard, and they don’t get paid.

One of the hardest-working volunteers is a young man named Kyle, whom I met while unpacking Amazon boxes from the Army of Good. He is genial, hardworking, and conscientious.

I thought it might be great if people who donate wrote Kyle a message—Amazon has a space for that in checkout—thanking him for his work and the very conscious way he does it.

You can write anything you’d like; he would greatly appreciate it. The Kyles make the pantry run.

Today, a load of soup, two boxes of Lemonade, and corned beef hash. This is a significant donation for the pantry; items are constantly requested but challenging to keep in stock. You have done a great deal of good this week. Thank you.