Gulfport Senior Center Food Pantry Seeking Donations to Meet Growing Needs

It is an unfortunate social-economic trend taking place across the country, from Bridgeport, Conn. to Terre Haute, Indiana, to Denver, Colorado, and yes, right here in Gulfport. Community Food Pantries to help feed low-income families are hurting for non-perishable food donations, leaving the shelves in these pantries as bare as Old Mother Hubbard’s cupboard. 

This is how often you will find the Pantry looking, even though as Susan Frank, supervisor of the senior center, noted, “we have a very small space.”  And that it is. Due to space limitations at the center, the food pantry is no more than a tiny closet. Yet, it serves dozens of people on a monthly basis, and that’s despite the food pantry now being limited in terms of those eligible to use it. 

According to Frank, to qualify you must be 50 years of age or older, be a Gulfport resident, and show you have an income that is considered at the poverty level, based on government guidelines. Other forms of eligibility for local seniors includes documentation showing you are on food stamps, relying on supplemental Social Security for income, are a Medicaid recipient or for shelter live in public housing as a Section 8 resident in Gulfport. 

“While these rules may seem rather stringent, we are flexible,” Frank noted. “If someone is clearly in need of food assistance, we won’t turn them away.”  Furthermore, many of those who qualify and do take advantage of the food pantry are allowed to do so twice a month.  Hence, the need for food donations to keep up with the demand is all the more imperative. 

The types of non-perishable food most popular and perhaps more nutritious than other food items Frank said are those “with protein in them. Tuna fish is good. And, almost anything with meat in it, like soups goes fast.”  She also encourages those who wish to contribute to the pantry to think about donating canned vegetables, cereals and items that would help those on “special diets,” such as food that doesn’t have any salt added. It also should be noted that pet food is welcomed at the food pantry, for low income seniors often have a hard time financially feeding their pets as well.  

Up until a few short years ago, the Gulfport Senior Center relied on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Distribution program to serve their constituents. However, according to Frank, this program reached a point where “there were too many rules placed on the center to provide service.”  This included a demand by program officials that the center open its food distribution program to the entire county. “This is something we just didn’t have the means to do.”

Thus, the Gulfport Senior Center Food Pantry program came into existence in 2009 and has been in high demand ever since. Frank cites a major reason for this is the significant downturn in the economy, noting that the need at the center by low income seniors needing food just continues to escalate.

There are various means by which you can assist the Gulfport Senior Center food pantry. Food donations are accepted whenever the center is open. You can also bring donations to the Gulfport Merchants Association tent at the Gulfport Fresh Market on Tuesdays, held from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Beach Boulevard below 29^th Avenue S. You can even bring your donations to the Gulfport Post Office at 3115 Beach Blvd. S.  

Monetary donations are another option. Simply bring your cash or check donation to the center during operating hours, or go online to the Gulfport Senior Center website: www.gulfportseniorfoundation.org. and make a donation using your credit card or Pay Pal account.

For more information contact the Gulfport Multipurpose Senior Center by phone at 727-893-237 or 727-893-1231, or send an e-mail to: mpscfoundation@tampabay.rr.com.