Celebrating a heartfelt season of giving is the theme for this year's Frosty Fest which mirrors the charitable spirit of West Chicagoans during the holiday season and throughout the year. For the past three years, organizers of the event have included a cookie decorating activity at the Fox Community Center which raises funds for a local charity. Through generous donations of sugar cookies from Parra's Bakery and last year's matching funds from SBI-West Chicago, a total of $792 has been donated to Neighborhood Food Pantries' West Chicago location.

Unlike for-profit businesses, the food pantry relies almost entirely on the generosity of other businesses, churches and, most of all, the citizens of the community in which it is located. It's within this spirit of giving that a food pantry becomes more than just a place, but a community, with a life and a heart of its own.

The West Chicago Neighborhood Food Pantry is situated in a cinder block building adjacent to the parking lot of Real Life Church, 525 N. Neltnor Boulevard. Thanks to a generous donation from the Church, the pantry is now housed in a building that can afford five families shopping simultaneously, up from two families at its previous location.

Site Coordinator Ken Walker and Assistant Site Director Nancy Andrews welcome those who walk through the doors of the Neighborhood Food Pantries.

At the center of the operation is Site Coordinator Ken Walker. It's his job to make sure that the shelves are stocked with a variety of healthy food choices and that the facility receives necessary upgrades to keep pace with the needs of its clients. After 13 years and two sites, Walker is still passionate about the people who walk through the door and their need to feel welcome. "It's not just a food pantry," said Walker. "I probably know 70% of the clients by name. We're a family."

As with any business, facility maintenance is a continual work in progress. The building originally housed a church resale shop and, after sitting vacant for a number of years, needed repairs and appliances to support its new use. Generous donations from local businesses got the site up and running and included a walk-in freezer from Willow Creek Community Church, a walk-in refrigerator from Cadence Health, a new window from Pella Windows, and a furnace, air conditioner and duct work from Chris Mechanical.

Although future wish-list items include a site expansion for restroom facilities (currently located in the Church across the parking lot), office space and a clothing closet, other beautification projects are underway to brighten the space.  The West Chicago Community High School art classes donated large, wooden cut-outs painted as animated fruit and vegetable characters to decorate the interior walls while the West Chicago Garden Club is coordinating an outdoor landscape project for 2015.

Food donations continue to be accepted at various drop-off locations throughout the community and, during harvest season, many area residents donated fresh produce from their gardens. The West Chicago Public Library District donates non-perishables received during its annual "Food for Fines" program and 4 the People coordinates an ongoing food drive at City Hall and other area locations. The "Direct Connect" Program through grocers such as Jewel, Aldi, Walmart and Caputo's Fresh Market, provides direct donations of fresh produce and dairy products which volunteers distribute daily.

Monetary donations received from programs such as the West Chicago Park District's Soup & Bread Dinner, First United Methodist Church's Breakfast with Santa and others are used to purchase food from the Northern Illinois Food Bank. According to Walker, they have eight times the purchase power through the Food Bank. Said Walker, "We can purchase eight boxes of cereal with a cash donation versus what it costs to purchase one box of cereal in a store."

Assistant Site Director Nancy Andrews encourages anyone with a passion for helping those less fortunate to volunteer. "It's not just a site, but more of a community. What we do here is lend an ear, in a non-judgmental way," said Andrews. She reminds us that the food pantry is not only available to those on food stamps, but is open to everyone. The site averages 560 families per month, fed two times per month. This totals 4,000 people, of which 2,500 are children.

Although the holidays are a time of giving, donations of time, talent and tender are gladly accepted at local organizations year-round. To volunteer or donate to the Neighborhood Food Pantry, contact Nancy Andrews at (630) 605-0887 or visit the site. An additional list of local charitable organizations can be found on the City's website under Residents/Community Links.