Belpre Area Veterans collect food for B.A.M. pantry

Community News

Belpre Area Veterans collect food for B.A.M. pantry

By Evan Bevins March 31, 2025 3 min read

Members of the Belpre Area Veterans deliver the donations they collected Saturday to Belpre Area Ministries. (Photo provided by Judy Frum)

Belpre Area Veterans member Gary Henderson, left, waves at a passing vehicle during the group鈥檚 food drive Saturday at the Wash Rite Unlimited Express parking lot off Washington Boulevard. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

Belpre Area Ministries volunteer Kathy Dye and board member Rita Rodgers place donations collected by the Belpre Area Veterans on the shelf at the B.A.M. food pantry Saturday. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

Belpre Area Ministries board President Lisa Stone, front left, poses for a picture with members of the Belpre Area Veterans and a check representing the monetary donation they made in conjunction with the food drive they held Saturday. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

Plastic totes filled with food donations are lined up during the Belpre Area Veterans food drive for the Belpre Area Ministries pantry Saturday. (Photo by Evan Bevins)

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BELPRE -- For the last five years, the Belpre Area Veterans organization has held a food drive in October to help stock the shelves and support a local food pantry supported by area churches.

On Saturday, the Belpre Area Ministries pantry got a spring boost from the group as well.

"This is great this time of year," said Judy Frum, co-vice president of the Belpre Area Ministries board. "We appreciate these guys."

Members of the veterans organization collected donations from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday in the Wash Rite Unlimited Express parking lot at the Kroger plaza on Washington Boulevard. They started with 17 plastic totes to hold the items, but had to have Frum deliver a few extra.

"And then we had a lot of people stop by and give us cash," said Bob Hadfield, vice president of Belpre Area Veterans.

They raised more than $1,000 to help the pantry purchase supplies.

"We greatly appreciate our community's generosity and particularly in helping those in need," group President Eric Clark said.

Clark said they will still have their fall drive as planned and will likely make the spring one an annual event as well.

Lisa Stone, president of the Belpre Area Ministries board, said the pantry always needs food, as well as toiletries and cleaning supplies. They serve an average of 125 families a month, up from 105 about a year ago.

They receive donations from individuals, churches and organizations like Washington County Harvest of Hope. They also buy supplies from local stores, but the shelves don't stay full for long, Stone said.

"And then at the end of one week, maybe two, it's starting to get bare again," she said.

Saturday's donations from the veterans' food drive "cuts down on our food bill, tremendously," Stone said. "Now we can give generously and help people in need."

People wanting to donate to the pantry can call 740-423-2069 or drop off food between 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. Monday, Wednesday and Friday.

Belpre Area Veterans is open to any veteran. They meet at 7 p.m. the second Tuesday of the month at the Belpre Senior Center.

"We have vets from Little Hocking (and) Waverly, W.Va.," Clark said. "I live in Marietta, but I graduated from Belpre (High School)."

"We even have a member down in Georgia" who pays dues every year, Hadfield added.

Evan Bevins can be reached at ebevins@newsandsentinel.com.

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