PORT ANGELES — The Port Angeles Salvation Army is running low on food and is seeking donations of canned and nonperishable goods Saturday.
Donations have fallen off just as more people are looking for help to feed themselves and their families, said Maj. Scott Ramsey, director of the church’s operations in Clallam County.
A food drive is set from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday at the downtown Port Angeles Safeway, 110 E. Third St., to stock the food pantry and help the organization get through the lean months until the Thanksgiving and Christmas food drives begin, Ramsey said.
He said Safeway provided a $1,000 Child Hunger Grant to the Port Angeles Salvation Army that enabled the organization to purchase some vital canned foods, but more is needed.
The organization needs nonperishable essentials, especially peanut butter, canned tuna, soup, stew and canned fruits and vegetables, he said.
A Salvation Army truck will be in the Safeway parking lot to collect the canned goods.
“Since April, we’re up 85 families per month at the food pantry and up 500 meals per month,” Ramsey said.
He said that from April through August, the Salvation Army provided 700 breakfasts per month and 2,200 lunches at the dining room at 206 S. Peabody St.
The number of families asking for help at the food pantry rose to 344 in July, Ramsey said.
More people seek help toward the end of the month rather than at the beginning, he said.
Many low-income residents are able to handle their food costs through monthly pay, food stamps or other beginning-of-the-month funding, but by the end of the month, they need some help to get to the next month, he said.
The Salvation Army serves breakfast from 8 a.m. to 8:40 a.m. Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, and lunch from noon to 1 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.
The food pantry is open for families in need from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays.
A planned expansion into a larger kitchen, dining room and food pantry at the former Napa Auto Parts store and auto repair garage at 123 S. Peabody St., just across from the present dining room, has been delayed.
Asbestos was found and must be removed before renovations can be done.
The Salvation Army is one of several organizations in Clallam County where residents can get help with food.
The Port Angeles Food Bank at 402 S. Valley St. is holding its own, said Trinity Hill, warehouse manager.
“We do have an increase in numbers, and we’re lower on food than usual, but it’s our regular cycle,” Hill said.
The food bank has a different set of sources for food from the Salvation Army, she said, and donors have been generous.
She said that when necessary, the food bank can help supply the Salvation Army’s food pantry, but no requests have been made recently.
The Sequim Food Bank, 144 W. Alder St., was closed Thursday, and no one was available for comment.
It is open from 9 a.m. to noon Mondays and Fridays, according to the Clallam Connection listing.
At the Forks Community Food Bank, 181 Bogachiel Way, there was no one available to speak to about its supplies Thursday.
The Forks food bank is open from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, according to the Clallam Connection listing.
For more information on Salvation Army food services, phone 360-417-3697 or stop by the office, which is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Fridays.
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Reporter Arwyn Rice can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 5070, or at arwyn.rice@peninsuladailynews.com.
