Laguna Food Pantry, volunteers meet the moment for those facing food insecurity

Change is expected with the passage of time, and those who have been around the Laguna Food Pantry through the years will not recognize it as the pantry of old.

What once was a center that provided a walk-in shopper’s experience is no longer, giving way to a drive-through grocery loading lane at its location in Laguna Canyon.

The shift in operations came about because of the coronavirus pandemic, and while it broke some hearts to move on from the charm of a shopper’s experience, it was necessary.

Board president Susan Thomas, executive director Anne Belyea and volunteer Mary Ann Sprague clear boxes after a busy morning at the Laguna Food Pantry on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“Initially, people were very sad,� Anne Belyea, executive director of the pantry, said. “Our volunteers and the families alike were sad that we had masks and gloves and shields and all of that, and that they weren’t having that sweet little mom-and-pop grocery store-like setting to go through and pick what they wanted. I think it’s evolved into a warm, loving atmosphere out here.�

Belyea said the pantry went from seeing 80 to 100 people a day when the drive-through method was deployed on March 16, 2020, and it swiftly climbed to nearly 200 daily visitors. The pantry is only open a short period each day of operation, from 8 to 10:30 a.m. Monday through Friday.

Demand remains in the vicinity, and with those sorts of numbers, the pantry has been fielding additional volunteers. The helping hands have risen from seven volunteers to more than 20 per day to handle the manual labor of grocery pickup and delivery from stores in the surrounding community, sorting food, packaging the goods and placing them into vehicles.

Volunteer grocery organizer Carol Maddux organizes dozens of eggs at the Laguna Food Pantry on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Jan Vickers, board president for the Laguna Beach Unified School District, was among the volunteers on site Wednesday.

“I really believe in it,� Vickers said of volunteering. “Years ago in the district, we started the requirement [for students] to have 40 volunteer hours before they graduated, and it was not real popular when we brought that up. Some of the parents came to warn me, and they said, ‘This is forced volunteerism,’ but it really caught on. There were not many schools doing it. Now, I think basically all schools do it.�

She added that working with the pantry not only gets food to those who have a need, but it helps to prevent food waste.

A new carport is a welcome addition to the Laguna Food Pantry in Laguna Beach.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

Lesli Henderson, vice chair of the board and the volunteers chair for the pantry, said a student can feel like their work matters when they decide to volunteer with the organization.

“I always tell parents, ‘Your child is going to come here, and they are going to see up front that they are making a difference and a change,’� Henderson said. “For a child, a young person, you don’t always get that in your life, but they know that when they’re putting food in a box and handing it out that a family is going to eat tonight that may not otherwise have been able to do that. A young person can take ownership of a job well done.�

The number of stores the pantry is rescuing groceries from since the start of the pandemic has grown threefold. Belyea said the pantry is now working with 22 grocery stores through its partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County. The pantry aims to meet all the food groups in the boxes it provides to its visitors.

Volunteers keep things moving at the Laguna Food Pantry, which is as busy as ever, on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

“Food is the focus and center of every celebration and activity, and to be able to provide the most basic need to families just is a no-brainer,� Belyea said. “It fills your heart, fills your soul to be able to do this. I get so much more out of it than I ever put in. It’s incredible. It really is.�

Laguna Food Pantry, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, may rescue groceries from neighboring cities, but its reach is greater.

A fresh box of produce goes out to a family in need at the Laguna Food Pantry on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)

A woman who requested her name not be made public said she has journeyed from Cypress to Laguna Beach for the past two months to put food on the table for her family of five. She described the drive-through experience as an efficient one.

“My friends tell me about this place,� she said. “Before, I would [go to] Cypress place, but it’s closed, and lots of places take a one-hour wait, and I have a baby. Today, she’s in a camp, but usually I have her with me. It’s a long time. She might cry or something, and it’s very difficult to stay in the car.�

Volunteer box organizer Andrea Stein prepares for an approaching client at the Laguna Food Pantry on Wednesday.

(Don Leach / Staff Photographer)