Monthly Archives: November 2025

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
November 25, 2025

Pottstown Cluster Coordinates Thanksgiving Meal Kit Distribution to Support Local Families

Pottstown, PA — In a collective effort to address food insecurity and provide accessible Thanksgiving meals to Montgomery County, Pa residents in need, the Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities partnered with the Pottstown Area Food Collaborative and seven local organizations to distribute Thanksgiving meal kits throughout the Pottstown community. This initiative, which included pre-packed meal kits with turkey or chicken and all the necessary side items for a full Thanksgiving dinner, ensured local families would enjoy a Thanksgiving meal regardless of financial barriers.

To manage this large-scale effort, the Pottstown Cluster led the coordination of food sourcing, packing, and distribution logistics. Through a combination of community donations, partnerships with regional food distributors, and strategic purchasing, the Pottstown Cluster secured all necessary items for the meal kits. Staff and volunteers worked together to inventory, sort, and prepare items ahead of the distribution event. The Pottstown Cluster also oversaw the full packing operation—organizing assembly lines, supervising volunteers, and confirming that each box contained the appropriate components for a complete Thanksgiving meal. Once assembled, the Pottstown Cluster transported and delivered the meal kits to community site locations, ensuring timely and efficient distribution across the region.

Thanksgiving meal kits were assembled on Monday, November 24, 2025, at the Pottstown Cluster Outreach Center. Volunteers from community groups, including First Presbyterian Church, Hobarts Run, Leadership TriCounty, and others, helped to sort, pack, and distribute the kits to seven designated community pick-up locations, where community distribution occurred later that day from 4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Patricia Shepherd, Food Services Director at the Pottstown Cluster, shared, “Streamlining our efforts not only strengthens our collective impact but also helps eliminate duplicated services, allowing us to reach more people more efficiently. It’s about ensuring that every person, no matter where they live, has the opportunity to sit down with their family and enjoy a Thanksgiving meal.”

Community partner pick-up locations included First Presbyterian Church, The Pottstown Salvation Army, YWCA, Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities (PCRC), Mission First, Pottstown Hospital/Tower Health, TRAAC (TriCounty Active Adult Center), and My Mobile Market. These sites ensured that meals were available to residents across Pottstown, including areas with limited access to food resources.

For over 50 years, the Pottstown Cluster of Religious Communities has been dedicated to providing vital services to individuals and families in the Greater Pottstown area. As a nonprofit organization, the Cluster works to address food insecurity, housing instability, and other basic needs, while fostering collaboration with community partners to create a stronger, more resilient region. Learn more at pottstowncluster.org.

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Our 2025 year-end campaign has now come to a close—thank you to everyone who gave so generously.

Now, we invite you to make a 2026 gift to support our mission in the year ahead. Your unrestricted donation through the donation form on this page below helps us provide food, essential resources, and a hand up to neighbors who need it most.

Give today and help us turn hardship into hope all year long.

Dear Friend,

As we reflect on 2025, we are inspired by the compassion and generosity that continue to strengthen our community. Together, we have helped thousands of neighbors—children, parents, seniors, and individuals—find hope, dignity, stability, and nourishment during some of the most challenging times.

This year alone, our food pantry has provided food to more than 12,425 local households. Children, parents, seniors, and individuals who might have gone hungry instead found full plates and full hearts. Families who struggled to put dinner on the table have found relief and dignity through the kindness of others.

The year is not over and we must share an important truth: food insecurity is rising once again. Federal funding cuts and the changes to SNAP benefits have left many families struggling to keep food on the table. Each week, we meet new faces. The faces of parents working multiple jobs yet still unable to afford groceries, seniors forced to choose between meals and medicine, and children quietly asking, “Is there anything to eat?” Behind every story is a person in great need. Someone doing their best, but still falling short through no fault of their own. These are our neighbors and they need us now more than ever.

Just last week, a father arrived at our pantry holding the hand of his little boy. The boy was tired; his cheeks streaked with tears. He had not eaten a full meal in two days. When our volunteer handed him a bag of apples, his eyes lit up as if he had been given a treasure. The father’s voice broke as he whispered, “You have no idea what this means. I did not know how to tell him there was nothing left at home.” In that moment, we were reminded that behind every empty shelf is a family in despair and that even something as simple as a bag of apples can bring a glimmer of hope.

This is why we must keep going. Because a hungry child who asks, “Is there anything to eat?” should never be met with the word “no.” Food supplies from our partners are shrinking. Food shelves are thinning. Every day, the need grows. We are doing everything we can, but we are at a critical crossroads. We remain steadfast in our mission. We will not turn anyone away, but to continue to provide food, hope, and stability to every neighbor who needs us, we urgently need your help.

Every dollar you give can make a powerful impact:
$1 = up to $17 worth of food = 5 meals for a family in need

 

Together, we can make sure every person who walks through our door is met with compassion, dignity, and a full bag of groceries because hunger is human and so is helping. Thank you for standing with us, for believing in our mission, and for bringing hope to those who need it most.

With heartfelt gratitude,
Patricia Shepherd 
Food Service Director

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