Blessing Box provides free goods for those in need

When eighth-grader June Mobley became eligible to earn her Girl Scout Silver Award, she immediately identified a need to support those who can’t be certain of their next meal.

“June loves to bake and she’s also very compassionate,” Mobley’s Girl Scout troop leader, Jenni Shirley, said. “I think June realized how some people can’t always have a hot meal and wanted to help change that.” 

Mobley and close friend Kate Jordan initially presented the idea to their youth group at First United Methodist Church Trussville. With the group’s collaboration, the Girl Scout Silver project transitioned into an initiative now called Feed the Hungry. The group has offered hot meals, hosted a grocery giveaway and, most recently, installed an all-access food pantry in the church parking lot. 

FUMCT Student Director Drake Roberts had heard of Blessing Boxes while attending a conference and suggested the concept as an addition to the youth group’s growing initiative. 

With a grassroots following similar to that of Little Libraries, Blessing Boxes provide unrestricted access for non-perishable items to those in need. The boxes frequently feature a loosely phrased suggestion: “Take what you need. Leave what you can.” 

Many community resource agencies have limits to the amount of assistance they provide to each individual, such as one visit per month to a food pantry or one meal per week from a public access kitchen. The FUMCT Blessing Box is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week to all in need, with no questions asked. 

“We want to offer a place where people can come and get whatever they need. It’s unlocked all the time, so people come by whenever works best for them,” Mobley said. 

With the youth’s initiative already gaining support in the congregation and community, Roberts recognized the need for a permanent weatherproof shelter to house their offerings. 

Hewitt-Trussville High School sophomore Thomas Schultz also attends FUMCT and was in need of a project worthy of earning Eagle rank through his Boy Scout troop. Roberts provided the requirements and an available location for the shelter and relied upon Schultz for the rest. 

“Thomas really did run the construction of the shelter. He gathered support from other Boy Scouts to help build it and it turned out great,” Roberts said. 

“Working on the project definitely made me more aware of the concern behind people just being able to have dinner for their family,” Schultz said.

“You wouldn’t think of Trussville as having a hunger issue, but there have been lots of people to take items that we’ve offered, so it makes you think there must be,” Mobley said.

Alabama and Louisiana share the highest rate of households with very low food security, around 7.1 percent according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture research conducted annually since 2001. Nationally, 4.8 percent of households are classified as having very low food security. 

When combining data for low and very low food security, the national average is 11.8 percent of households.

Since officially stocking the Blessing Box for the first time in October, the youth have developed a schedule of restocking items on Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. 

“We’ve run out of toiletries three times because food pantries don’t typically offer them,” Mobley said. “It just really makes you aware of how fortunate you are to have a pantry full of food, which is something a lot of us take for granted.”

Roberts said the Blessing Box has also enhanced the community inside FUMCT’s walls. 

“The spirit of support throughout the congregation has been really impressive. Parents whose kids are in the daycare program here will even leave bags of donations,” he said. “There are ladies in the church that like to knit. They made toboggans and scarves, which was really nice.”

The youth group currently is seeking toothbrushes in unopened original packaging, toothpaste, travel size shampoos and soaps. Soups, stews, chili, toboggans, gloves and scarves are also appreciated during colder months. 

Donations should be delivered to the FUMCT office rather than placed directly inside the Blessing Box. Bulky items such as coats and items that could attract mice will be transferred to the Trussville Ecumenical Assistive Ministry. The church office is open Mondays through Thursdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. 

For more information, contact FUMCT Student Director Drake Roberts at 655-3250 or drake@revivestudentministry.com.