“The Interfaith Council has been a Godsend to Our Lady’s Pantry,” said director Tom Bullaro. “Our pantry, in fact, has thrived in this community for 25 years, thanks to the support of countless individuals and a number of philanthropic groups. The Interfaith Council, however, has been our single greatest supporter. This most recent gift of $13,000 reflects a stunning $173,00 of steady support since 2008.”
“We are so thankful to the Interfaith Council — and all our neighbors who shop at the Nearly New Shop, which funds these gifts — for their continued support,” said Bullaro.
Looking back, Bullaro remembers when he and Anita started volunteering at Our Lady’s Pantry in 2004. The pantry was serving about 50 clients every week. At that time, the pantry had no truck to collect food, so many volunteers would rush about every week filling their individual cars with as much food as their cars could hold. They would then bring that food back to the pantry to prepare for distribution on Saturday. It was complicated, and frenetic, requiring lots of time and the effort of many.
In 2008, however, the Interfaith Council provided the funding for the pantry to purchase its first box truck, Bullaro said. This truck changed everything, allowing a level of organization never before possible. Not only did this truck simplify collecting food, but Our Lady’s Pantry could also collect pallets of food at wholesale prices from Feeding Tampa Bay.
“Essentially, this truck launched us from a neighborhood pantry serving about 50 clients a week to our current operation,” Bullaro said. “In a typical week, an average 270 clients visit our drive-through pantry every Saturday morning.”
“With all their very generous donations over the years, the Interfaith Council has been blessing to the underserved among our neighbors,” Bullaro said. “We so appreciate their care of us over these many years.”
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