• An emergency food pantry in Dickinson, North Dakota, recently got help in meeting local needs after issuing a public call for assistance via social media.
• The Association to Meet Emergency Needs pantry needed to replenish its supply shelves, prompting support from Marathon Petroleum’s Dickinson renewable diesel facility.
• Employee volunteers gathered thousands of dollars in food and other essential goods and spent an afternoon re-stocking shelves and assisting pantry clients as they arrived.

The Association to Meet Emergency Needs (AMEN) food pantry has been providing assistance in the Dickinson, North Dakota, area for 38 years. So, when the pantry itself recently asked for help via social media, volunteers from Marathon Petroleum Corporation’s (MPC) Dickinson renewable diesel facility quickly came forward.

“A Facebook posting showed pictures of empty shelves at the pantry, and a few operators at our site were talking about the posting and the good that the pantry does in the area,” said Dickinson Renewable Diesel Facility Manager Nick Bear. “With community investment funds from our facility, one evening after work, I shopped at local stores and filled several shopping carts with nonperishable goods.”

Bear brought roughly $1,000 of items to the renewables facility to add to a larger employee initiative for AMEN. A site food drive generated more than 600 pounds of food and other goods that came through direct contributions and purchases made with approximately $1,300 in cash donations. Employee volunteers delivered all the food and supplies to AMEN, helped stock shelves and assisted clients as they arrived.

“It was a humbling experience getting to know the people who are benefiting from the pantry.”

“Every individual who comes into the pantry gets a list of predetermined items to choose from, and we facilitated their shopping trips,” said MPC Senior Time and Scheduling Coordinator Shannon DeWall who arranged the employee volunteer effort. “It was a humbling experience getting to know the people who are benefiting from the pantry. Some were regular customers, but there were a few who just needed temporary support to get back on their feet.”

For MPC Control Systems Specialist Jeff Gartner, volunteering provided an opportunity to reconnect with AMEN. For several years, Gartner contributed fresh produce from his 15,000-square-foot garden until recently taking a break from gardening.

“Corn, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, pumpkins,” Gartner said. “A couple of the years, I donated approximately 800 pounds of produce.”

The volunteer effort also allowed for the formal presentation of a $10,000 grant from the facility that had been previously approved. DeWall pointed out how much she and other volunteers gained from the overall experience.

“We all thought we were going to just stock shelves. We didn’t realize we would have that one-on-one time with those in need,” she said. “It is extremely rewarding to learn about the impact the pantry is having on the community.”