What We Do
At our St. Vincent pantry we provide supplemental food for individuals and families who don’t have enough to eat. In addition, we provide financial assistance to households about to have their water, electricity, or natural gas shut off because they are behind on their bills. We also help with pharmacy bills. In addition to this, we give away box fans in advance of summer and electric space heaters in advance of winter. We also give out food baskets to provide those we serve with a festive dinner for Thanksgiving or Christmas.
The demand for our services far exceeds our ability to help everyone in need. Our activities are limited by three factors: funding (the amount of donations we receive), staffing (the number of volunteers we have), and the size of our pantry building. Because of these limitations, we need to set eligibility requirements for the services we provide.
Supplemental Food
The food we provide typically includes frozen meat or fish, fresh vegetables and fruit, canned soup, vegetables and fruit, dried beans and fruit, dairy items, bread, pastries, deli items, pasta, breakfast cereal, and peanut butter and jelly. The household supplies we provide include toilet paper, bar soap, toothpaste, dish soap, laundry detergent, feminine hygiene products and disposable diapers. We do our best to keep our pantry stocked, but the availability of items can vary from day to day. Appointments are needed to receive food. Call the pantry during our operating hours to make an appointment. The phone number is (803) 642-3211. For supplemental food (typically enough to feed a household for one week) the eligibility is one food appointment every six weeks. We can provide information about other food pantries in the area that can be visited in the interim.
Food for the Homeless
We have two separate programs for feeding the homeless:
Day packets – These plastic bags provide enough food for one day. They are given out to homeless individuals who come to the pantry during our operating hours Monday through Thursday. Eligibility to receive these is once per week. Recipients are provided information on soup kitchens and other food sources they can access during other days of the week. These food packets are assembled by the St. Mary’s youth ministry.
Sunday lunch program – We participate in this program, which is coordinated by the Aiken County Homeless Coalition, by providing 180 bagged lunches on two Sundays of each month. Ministries of other local churches provide the lunches on the other Sundays of the month. These lunches are given out at 2:00pm from the back door of Mother Teresa Hall which is located on Union Street between Richland Avenue and Park Avenue. Various groups within St. Mary’s parish make the sandwiches that are included in these lunches. The lunch bags are assembled with help from St. Mary’s youth ministry.
Utility Assistance
This program provides financial assistance when households have fallen behind paying for their utility bills. We have experienced an overwhelming demand for utility assistance, far more than we can accommodate. Because of this we are currently revising our guidelines for this program. The purpose of these changes is to spread our utility assistance across a greater number of households and to assist those we serve in becoming more self-sustaining.
The dollar amount of assistance we are able to provide a household is limited by the amount of contributions we receive from our donors. This amount is adjusted on a month-to-month basis as needed. We only provide assistance if there is an immediate need to avoid utility service from being cut off.
Amounts are paid to the utility company, not to the individuals we are assisting. Before receiving assistance from us, the recipient is expected to apply for any assistance plans the utility company has to offer (e.g., a repayment plan). To apply for utility assistance for the first time, the recipient must come to the pantry, bringing with them their current utility bill and IDs of all household members 18 years of age or older. To receive assistance, the recipient is asked to pay a minimum of 10% of the amount of the assistance they will receive from us.
In addition, the eligibility to receive utility assistance is being extended from once every 12 months to once every 14 months. There is an additional requirement to receive repeat assistance: financial counselling. If the recipient does not receive financial counselling, the eligibility is extended from once every 14 months to once every 24 months. Information about how to receive financial counselling can be obtained by calling the pantry during operating hours at (803) 642-3211. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis. These guidelines may change at any time.