Phone: 800.279.2667 | Fax: 701.577.3777
Less Hunger and Better Health is Pantry's Goal
Image
Less Hunger and Better
Health is Pantry's Goal
Having enough food is a real problem Brenna Hudson sees in her practice as a physician assistant and registered dietitian in Ray.
“People can’t be healthy or focus on their medical needs if they have empty bellies and have to choose between paying for medicine versus paying for food,” she said.
Hudson became the first physician assistant in North Dakota to open an independent practice, Ray Family Medical Center, five years ago.
Within six months, she launched Ray Food Pantry, originally partnering with a local Lutheran church before moving into donated space in Suite One at the Ray Mall. The former laundromat is now dedicated to food distribution.
With Ray’s population of around 800, the impact is significant. The pantry distributes approximately 1,500 to 2,000 pounds of food each month
“I can’t say thank you enough for the generosity of the people who support this project or who set aside these funds to help make it possible.”
from 5:30-7 p.m. on the first and third Tuesdays of the month.
Hudson emphasized the pantry’s work would not be possible without its dedicated volunteers, who assist with everything from inventory and paperwork to cleaning and food distribution.
They see the need increase during winter months, but recent reductions in SNAP benefits further upped demand. As a result, funds earmarked for replacing decades old carpet that was being taped down had to be redirected toward food purchases.
Being chosen as a recipient of the Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative (MWEC) Impact Grant
and a donation from Basin Electric Power Cooperative helped change that. The funds will allow the pantry to move forward with a long delayed flooring replacement in the aging space.
That’s welcome news for Hudson, who says the priority is always food over facilities.
“Anytime you’re on a shoestring budget, projects like this just get put off,” she said. “This grant made it possible for us to move forward when we otherwise couldn’t.”
Hudson expressed deep gratitude to MWEC members who make the Impact Grant program possible.
“I can’t say thank you enough for the generosity of the people who support this project or who set aside these funds to help make it possible,” Hudson said. “They will never know the full benefit of how many people this has reached.”