Caritas Food Pantry and Meijer partner to provide hunger relief.

Volunteers help with food distribution at Caritas Food Pantry in Custer.

Caritas Food Pantry and Meijer partner to provide hunger relief.

By Kelly Glover, Manager, Caritas Food Pantry.

CUSTER — People in our community continue to struggle every day to pay their bills and put food on their tables. Some are even forced to choose between the two, a heartbreaking decision that no one should have to make. I’m pleased to announce that Caritas Food Pantry has joined forces with the Meijer Simply Give hunger relief program this spring to help fill that void for our local families.

Each Simply Give campaign helps more than 235 food pantries in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Wisconsin keep their shelves stocked with food for those in need. But it also fosters a sense of community by encouraging customers to purchase $10 Simply Give donation cards, which are then converted into Meijer food-only gift cards and given to the local food pantry selected by the store.

Caritas Food Pantry will benefit from donation cards purchased at the Ludington Meijer Store now through June 17.

I want to encourage you to help us fulfill our mission of helping feed the hungry in Ludington and surrounding areas by purchasing a food donation card during your next shopping trip. Tell your friends, relatives, neighbors and co-workers because every dollar makes a difference.

And when we give, Meijer gives. For the seventh consecutive year, Meijer will contribute at least $1 million to the 2018 Simply Give program.

We are very encouraged about this opportunity to serve the hungry Mason and surrounding counties.

Caritas Food Pantry is located adjacent to St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 85 S. Madison St.