DIXFIELD — Learning to be generous is something that is often taught by parents. Barbara Lane, of Peru, learned the lesson well.

On the spur of the moment last year, Lane decided she wanted to do something to give back to the community, so with the help of her mother, Elizabeth, and her cousin, Norine Clarke, she parked her white business van in front of Log Cabin Craftworks on Main Street in Dixfield, owned by Norine and Ralph Clarke, and collected non-perishable food items for those in need.

This year, she’s planning to do the same thing.

From 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Dec. 19, the Second Annual Food Pantry Drive will be held at the craft business parking lot.

For the first 125 people who donate three non-perishable items, or $5 cash, Lane will give a free, limited edition, original Christmas design, blue T-shirt she has created.

Lane, owner of Hot Colors Screen Printing and Design in Norway, said business has been good, and she wants to help others whose lives may not be going as well.

“I have a lot of customers in Dixfield and I want to give back to the community. I have a strong faith,” she said.

All of the cash and food items will be divided evenly between the Mexico Food Pantry housed in the Congregational Church, and the Dixfield food pantry, housed in the Dixfield Common Baptist Church. The money and items will be brought to the two pantries soon after the collection ends on Saturday.

Although she’s not certain just how much money and food was collected last year, she knows it was a lot more than she expected.

“People came from everywhere and were so generous,” she said.

This year, the Mt. Zircon Chapter of the Eastern Star, of which Lane is a member, will help out with some of the costs for the T-shirts, along with her mother who has sewn hand made outfits for an American girl-type doll that will be raffled. All those proceeds will go to the food pantries, too.

So, too, will 5 percent of the net sales for the day at Log Cabin Craftworks.

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Barbara Lane, who is planning a food drive for Dec. 19, displays a sample of one of the originally designed T-shirts she has created that will be given to the first 125 donors of three non-perishable food items or a $5 cash donation.