PILSEN -- The Pilsen Food Pantry is looking to raise $100,000 by Oct. 31 as it hopes to continue its work of helping people who face food insecurity -- and it's close to hitting its goal.
The $100,000 would cover about 20 percent of the pantry's operating expenses and allow the nonprofit to help more people. More than $84,000 has been raised so far. Supporters can donate online.
"We are making slow, steady progress, and we may make it," said Executive Director Evelyn Figueroa.
The Pilsen Food Pantry is open Monday-Friday, distributing fresh produce, frozen proteins, dairy, shelf-stable foods and household items to 120 clients daily. Clients can pick what they want, a model that reduces food waste, promotes healthy eating and cooking and is "more dignified" for struggling neighbors, Figueroa said.
The pantry is open to everyone in need, regardless of where they live. Most clients live in Pilsen, Little Village, the Near West Side, Back of the Yards and Gage Park, Figueroa said. Four languages are spoken in the pantry's waiting room: English, Spanish, Cantonese and Taishanese.
The Pilsen Food Pantry offers delivery services to 15 percent of its clients -- primarily older people and people with disabilities -- though the need for delivery is greater than that, Figueroa said.
More people could use delivery orders, but not all clients can speak English fluently to place orders over the phone. The pantry only has one Cantonese staff member, so taking more phone calls and serving visitors in person becomes difficult, Figueroa said.
"It'd be really nice to add more interpretation services," she said.
The pantry has four employees and relies on interns and volunteers who help with food distribution, social and medical services and other tasks.
Last year, when the city's migrant shelters were at capacity, the pantry saw a greater need for free food and other supplies, with up to 140 people visiting daily.
"We had people coming from up to 10 emergency shelters. They were coming from Rogers Park and Hyde Park all the way here," Figueroa said.
Figueroa and Alex Wu, family physicians, started the pantry in 2018 to help neighbors facing food insecurity on the Lower West Side.
The needs quickly grew, and the pantry's operations ramped up. At the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the nonprofit added a free thrift store and a social worker helping families apply for assistance programs.
Last year, the nonprofit moved into its own building at the former YMCA, 2124 S. Ashland Ave., where it also houses a free clothes closet, medical supply closet, little library and teaching kitchen. The pantry hosts a free clinic twice a month and organizes special distribution events for Thanksgiving and Christmas.
In 2023, the pantry distributed food to over 30,000 clients and provided services to over 60,000 people, Figueroa said.