With the holiday season upon us, food items are needed now more than ever at local food pantries.

Greene County Action Resource Center (ARC) Acting Manager Shirley Haupert says when kids are on break from school, it puts a lot of strain on the household for food. Items that are especially needed include cereal, pasta products, along with holiday-specific items like instant potatoes, stuffing and cranberry sauce. Haupert tells Raccoon Valley Radio there has been a huge increase in the number of households that use the food pantry.

“We have seen an increase overall since we moved here in May. We went from having like anywhere from 80-95 families a month (to) last month we had 147 (families). That shows you how much our need here is in Greene County to get help.”

Haupert notes they accept food donations anytime, but she suggests making sure the food items aren’t past the expiration date. Contact Haupert to make a donation by calling 515-386-8168.