By Allison Tardif
The River Food Pantry
The services offered by The River Food Pantry continue to grow and evolve to meet the needs of its clients. Recently, The River revived a popular program: free clothing and household goods.
The new clothing room, located just off The River’s lobby, is open for clients to shop by appointment only from 9–11 am every Wednesday or on a first come first served basis every Thursday from 12–2 pm.
With the rising cost of many household essentials, this program aims to help clients who struggle to afford many necessities beyond food. Clients can shop for clothing for men, women, children and babies, as well as small kitchen and bathroom items such as pots and pans.
The space is set up like a store, which allows clients to experience the dignity of choice while they shop, and reflects two of The River’s core values — respect and compassion. The clothing room, The River’s only non-food program, is open only to registered food pantry clients, who can shop for clothing once per month.
For many years, The River offered clothing and household goods at its old building on Darwin Road. It was discontinued in 2020 for health and safety reasons during the COVID-19 pandemic. Then, with the growth in demand for food assistance and the increased number of clients served in the years that followed, there was not enough space in the old building for a clothing room.
When designing The River’s new building at 3301 Packers Ave., The River’s leadership and building planners included a space dedicated to a clothing program.
One of the first clients to shop in the new space shared how much he appreciated the help. “Before COVID, I had a lung transplant and needed extra support. The River quite literally saved my life,” he said.
To learn more about how to access The River’s clothing or support it with donations, visit riverfoodpantry.org/clothing.
