More than 120 people, representing 14 churches, were present Sept. 18 to celebrate 40 years of service to the community by The Churches Joint Council on Human Needs, or CJCOHN, a food pantry for Saline County.
“One of the great things is, we have never turned anyone away because of a shortage of food,” said Pam Ray, food coordinator for CJCOHN. “We can always make a run to the store and get more food.
“So that is something I am really happy about. That’s a good feeling.”
Friends, donors and volunteers were invited to the Family Life Center of First Baptist Church in Benton to help celebrate the nonprofit’s contributions over the years.
Walt Maner, chairman of the CJCOHN Board of Directors, told a story about one family whom he assisted that really humbled him.
“I was boxing food and helping people load it,” Maner said. “I took the food out the door, and here came a family that was very well-dressed.”
Maner said they were about as well-dressed as anybody in the room, and when he looked at their U.S, Department of Agriculture information card, it said, “Family of five.”
“While I was carrying out the food, I felt judgmental, but I was trying not to be,” Maner said. “I mean, these people didn’t look like they needed food.”
When Maner went out to the parking lot, there was a brand-new Buick, “like the ones you see on [car dealership] signboards.” He got a little closer to the car and asked where to put the box.
“The lady said, ‘You can’t put it there because that’s where [a family member] sleeps,” Maner said. “I thought, ‘Wow, that’s a new car, but they’re homeless.’
“The whole family was living out of that brand-new Buick. That’s all they had. They needed every bit of food that we’d put in those boxes,” Maner said. “So it taught me that nobody is far away from needing someone’s help.”
Maner said all it takes is one thing to go wrong, and you’re in need.
“We love everybody who comes through the door, so thank you, again, for all your help and for making this thing work,” Maner said.
Marilyn Schick, who is one of the founding members of CJCOHN and still volunteers in the clothing department, said CJCOHN was formed by people from different churches, but mainly by members from First Presbyterian Church of Benton and the church’s minister, the Rev. Bob Walton.
“We had four little rooms over on Lillian Street,” Schick said Sept. 18. “It was like a tiny strip mall, and we had three rooms.
“The first room was the intake room, and it had a desk and a chair in it. The middle room had our clothes, which were just piled on long tables, and our food closet was three little shelves.
“We all got together and brought canned and nonperishable food. That was our beginning.”
Schick said a group of ministers, social workers, a public-health nurse and “people with good hearts saw a need back in the mid-1970s, and that’s how CJCOHN started.”
CJCOHN has now expanded to serve over a quarter of a million people in the four decades of its existence.
“When I first started, we would had about 12 to 15 families that would come once every six months,” Ray said. “As we got involved with the government, we were given USDA food, and people can get it once a month every month.
“That’s why our numbers are so high.”
CJCOHN can also assist with utilities, but only the last $50 on a bill. For example, if someone owed $300 on an electric bill, CJCOHN could only pay $50 of it, and only if the resident could come up with the other $250.
The application process is pretty simple for those in need.
“All you have to do is come in and ask,” Ray said. “We have to see ID, and they have to live in Saline County.
“If they don’t live in Saline County, we have a list of other pantries in Saline County, or we can give them the food bank number, and they can find [a food pantry] that is closer.”
Otherwise, as long as they haven’t already gotten food that month, anyone is eligible. CJCOHN also gives out three outfits of clothing to each member of a household per month.
The pantry is always in need of donations, but peanut butter, tuna, bars of soap, toilet paper and laundry detergent are some of the more sought-out items.
“We will also gladly accept money donations,” Ray said. “We can fill up a truck for $300 at a food bank.”
CJCOHN currently has more than 100 volunteers, but Ray said the organization is always looking for more.
“The only requirements to be a volunteer at CJCOHN is that you’ve got to want to,” Ray said. “And if you’ve got a want to do it, we’ll find a place for you.”
For those who work during the day, CJCOHN does meet once a month, on Thursday nights, to help with packing food that is distributed to senior citizens. The day changes each month, so those interested should call Ray at (501) 840-1327.
Next up for CJCOHN is the annual Hunger Hike 5K, which will take place Oct. 9. Ray said the event has 26 sponsors that help cover the cost of the shirts that are given out to the participants, who raise $25 each.
Registration for the event will be at 1:30 p.m. at the Sevier Street parking lot across the street from Benton’s First United Methodist Church. The race, which will begin at 2 p.m., usually lasts about an hour and a half.
CJCOHN, at 103 E. Elm St. in Benton, is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesdays and Fridays. For more information on CJCOHN, visit Facebook at www.facebook.com/cjcohn.cares or call (501) 776-2912.
Staff writer Sam Pierce can be reached at (501) 244-4314 or spierce@arkansasonline.com.