Coming up for air after the food emergency sparked by the government shutdown, we wanted to express our gratitude to our Hancock County friends and neighbors who spontaneously stepped up to provide extra support to the pantry in a time of increased need and heightened uncertainty.

Special thanks are due to Provender Kitchen + Bar, Fogtown Brewing Company, Flexit Café, Conscious Café and Governor’s Restaurant, who generously provided extra food and prepared meals (a growing need) for our pantry shoppers; to State Senator Nicole Grohoski, for bagging groceries and standing with neighbors in need; to the Ellsworth LDS Church for donating a tractor-trailer load of nonperishables; to the Ellsworth schools for putting on food drives; and to the Rotary Club of Ellsworth, Hannaford and Shaw’s for coordinating the annual turkey drive on the pantry’s behalf.

Thanks are due, too, to the Ellsworth Public Library, the City of Ellsworth, and to the many, many individuals, businesses and community partners who donated food and, importantly, funds to support families in need. We are moved by, and deeply grateful for, this ray of hope this amazing community has provided in difficult times.