I am humbled, amazed, proud, and uplifted by the Army Of Good, which cleaned out an entire Cambridge Pantry Wish List after a week of bitter cold took away its family’s fuel money and food stamps.
It does want to make me cry a little with joy and hope. As grateful as we are, we never stop at the pantry but can take deep breaths and feel enormous gratitude.
Instead of worrying about where their food will come from, they will eat well this week—warm, healthy, nutritious food, thanks to you, good people. They will also be clean and comfortable.
Sarah is building a landmark model food pantry that lifts people, not knocks them down or shames them.
The first list, posted last night, disappeared quickly. Sarah was stunned, and the replacement list also disappeared soon. Sarah posted a third wish list this morning, and she’s focused on another hygiene day for today: deodorant, shampoo, and hand soap. A voice inside my head says we can do it again.
(Today, Hygiene):
Softsoap Moisturizing Liquid Hand Soap, Soothing Clean Aloe Vera – 7.5 Fl Oz Pack of 6, $7.44.
The spirits are with us now; there is a God for sure or a spirit strong enough to feed our sense of humanity and give us hope. I just put up the third list (we’ll return to normal on Monday or Tuesday), but why not try?
Let’s go for three; there’s no pressure. You’ve done more than enough. But the final Wish List for the night and morning includes all bargains, some for a dollar or less. This makes me bold.
The cold cleaned out many of the most essential items, and we’ve restored almost all of them in hours. Just for the hell of it, here are the remaining items on Sarah’s new wish list. There is no pressure; I feel the wind at our back and hear the spirits singing. They want to make the pantry whole.
Amazon Bargain Items For The Food Pantry. Everything is needed. Dare we try it again?
Men’s Antiperspirant Deodorant, Pack of 4, $11,98.
Alberto VO 5 Extra Body Shampoo, $1.01.
Ben’s Original Ready Rice Jasmine Rice (Pack of 6), $9.98.
Duncan Hines Classic Cake Mix, 15.25, $1,47.
Duncan Hines Brownie Mix Fudge, 18.3 Oz (Pack of 5), $7.50.
Amazon Fresh Canned Great Northern Beans, $0.89.
Velvet Shells & Cheese Sauce, three ct. (Pack, 12 ), $7.47.
Tide Liquid Laundry Detergent, 24 Loads, 34 Fl.oz, $5.49.
A million blessings to you, Army Of Good donors. You remind me, Sarah, the volunteers, and the families needing food help that good people are everywhere. We are never alone. God does provide.
Thanks to you, there will be enough good food waiting for them when the Pantry service returns next weekend.
When “thank you” becomes so frequent, it loses its impact. I hope not. Sarah says, “We so appreciate everyone’s generosity. People struggle during the holidays, and this helps! This morning was a nut. Within a couple of hours, the Army of Good had already filled up all of the items but one—the pizza cruze. And that went right before sunrise.”
I’d love to show you a blank Wish List. Sarah saw one not once but twice this morning.
When I returned from our vacation, Sarah messaged me, “Our needs increased suddenly and dramatically because people had to spend all their money on fuel.”
We usually can comfortably heat our small farmhouse with two wood stoves burning, but last week, we had to keep the furnace—usually only a backup—running all day for four days. It was still cold.” I can only imagine the fear and worry of the Cambridge Pantry families when they had to blow their budgets on fuel.
So here are the Wish List items that need support. You can access the Wish List any time, day or night, by clicking here or the green button at the bottom of every blog page. I don’t expect anyone to purchase all these items, but follow your heart and judgment if something touches you while browsing the list.