Church partnering with Roswell food pantry as grocery prices continue rising

FULTON COUNTY, Ga — A Roswell food pantry is struggling to keep their shelves stocked as prices of items continued to rise.

When North Fulton Community Charities director Mel Fortin checks her store’s shelves, it can be depressing, she says.

“A can of beans went from 89 cents to $1.69. A can of chicken went from $2.80 to $5,” Fortin told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen.

The uptick in those prices can be devastating when you’re running a food pantry.

Fortin says the food pantry on Elkins Road in Roswell has an army of volunteers and faithful donors to keep it running.

“But even if you donated $100 a month all the time, that $100 is more like $75 now,” Fortin said.

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Like many others, inflation has hit the food pantry hard. Because more people are struggling to pay the prices at the grocery store, the need for food pantries has become even greater, but the donations aren’t keeping pace.

To help, North Point Community Church in Alpharetta, one of the largest churches in the area, has launched a food drive to help the pantry, complete with a grocery list from Fortin.

“She knows exactly what her clients want, so she tells us the items she wants us to ask for,” North Point’s Ameera Joe said.

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Fortin says this is every bit as tough as it was during the early days of the pandemic.

She says folks understood the need back then. Because of the higher cost of almost everything, the need is even greater now.

“We do live in north Fulton, and everybody thinks that everyone does very well here. That’s one of the hardest things we have to educate on. People really need help in north Fulton also,” Fortin said.

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To donate to North Point’s food drive, click here.

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