Belleville area churches that have food distribution programs are seeing an increased need for these services.
The Belleville United Methodist Church has been running a food pantry since 1983, serving Belleville, Sumpter Township, and Van Buren Township. Over the years, it has expanded from its tiny early beginnings to a much larger program filling multiple rooms in the church.
Currently headed by church member Marilyn Wood, the pantry distributed 250 bags of groceries and toiletries in July alone.
“The need continues to grow and those who seem to be hurting the most are our seniors – they were 64% of our clients in 2025. They’re living on small incomes – Social Security and often no pensions. The homeless numbers have also increased. We have served more the first six months of 2026 than all of 2025,” Wood says.
Major funding for the food pantry comes from Meijer’s Simply Give program, which matches local donations dollar for dollar. The closet also receives support from a foundation and local donations.
When Meijer has “double days,” it’s great for the food pantry because if the food pantry can raise $5,000, Meijer will contribute double that, for a grand total raised of $15,000. That’s a great help, but Wood notes that she’d already spent $50,000 on the pantry from January through late July, so there’s still a great need for donations.
“We’ve had 250 bags go out just in July,” Wood says. “And we’re only open Tuesdays and Wednesdays from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.,” she ay
The program also runs on volunteers, with about 37 regulars who come for one or more days to help distribute bags of groceries and hygiene items on distribution days or to pack and do other behind-the-scenes duties on other days.
Steve Lazere has been volunteering with BUMC’s pantry for about five years, shortly after moving to Belleville.
“I’m a retired social worker, and want to give back to the community,” he says. “I was going to the library one day, and I saw that they had this food closet and they needed volunteers. There was a sign-up, so I got in contact in Marilyn, and I guess the rest is history The church does great work, and so I’m glad to be a part of that.”
Regular bags for distribution include a variety of food including both fresh and packaged items and personal care products. They also pack special kits for homeless people who might be unable to cook and need ready-to-eat options like granola bars.
Woods notes that the program also accepts garden overages and donations from local farmers so they can continue to provide fresh produce to clients.
Anyone wishing to donate food items should do so between 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays at 417 Charles St.
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The Tuesday and Thursday food distribution at Faith Community Church is much newer than the one at BUMC.
As The Independent reported in March, the Belleville Area Chamber of Commerce held a grand-opening, ribbon-cutting March 2 for the non-profit Makana Foundation’s community pantry at its new location at Belleville Faith Community Church.
Malia Germain created the foundation to further the work her family was already doing unofficially. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Germain and her family delivered groceries to homebound seniors and veterans, and then started a drive-through grocery giveaway at their house that fed 100 families at its peak.
“The church saw how much we were growing and they offered us a space,” Germain says.
On July 30, Germain and her volunteers tried a “pop-up” style giveaway at the pavilion behind the church, offering trays bursting with tomatoes, fruit, peppers, and other produce.
“Normally on Thursdays, we would just pack produce boxes, and they would come inside of the church, they sign up and we give them the box. But we wanted to try something different and give people a choice. We thought we’d see how it works, and it’s going great,” Germain said.
She says about 150 people are served on Thursdays, and her last Tuesday distribution attracted over 200. Thursdays are primarily focused on produce, while Tuesday boxes include meat and bread.
The Faith Community distributions rely on a statewide food rescue program and donations from community members. Anyone who would like to volunteer or donate to the nonprofit Makana Foundation can find more information at themakanafoundation.org.
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Be Church at 494 W Columbia Ave. also hosts a grocery giveaway starting a 4 p.m. on Thursdays until food runs out. Cars begin lining the side of the road as early as 2 p.m. on those days.
Mickey Wordhouse directs the weekly program and said she is excited about a collaborative fundraiser coming up that invites local food programs to join together. There will be an Iron Chef style competition to see what kind of meals someone can make with the food that comes in the weekly boxes.
Wordhouse says the program started about two years ago. They typically plan for about 120 families but served 180 during the last distribution in July.
Much of their food comes from food rescue organizations like Forgotten Harvest and Gleaners. Local organizations also donate money and resources, including the local chapter of the Masons, DeBuck’s Family Farm, and Made in the Mitten.
Wordhouse hopes to expand into home delivery next for seniors and veterans.
“We have two ladies who walk over here from the senior center every single Thursday with their wagons and pick up stuff,” she says. “I’m trying to work with Forgotten Harvest to find a way to service them.”
More information about Be Church’s food pantry program is available at www.bechurchfood.com.
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Each of these pantries fills a slightly different need, but they are also careful to work together, whether it’s a fundraiser that benefits them all or trading resources.
For instance, the Makana Foundation lost a deep freezer during some power outages, and Be Church donated a chest freezer to them. Another example: the BUMC food closet not only hands out bags of food but also a list of other area resources that names the other food pantries and emergency resources in the area.
When these food programs aren’t operating, residents can access emergency food at the Little Free Food Pantry on Charles Street across from the library.