OXFORD — After a huge turnout in January when several businesses got together to offer free food to local families, Oxford will host a more permanent food pantry.
Selectmen on Thursday approved a one-year agreement for several residents to set up a food pantry in the Town Office on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
Suzanne Grover of Grover Gundrillng, the Oxford County Agricultural Society and Black Bear Entertainment and organizer of the food pantry, agreed to the one-year term. Hopefully, she said, the economy will recover in the next year and people won’t need it.
In the meantime, the town’s law firm, Bernstein & Shur, has offered to set up the pantry with legal status as a charitable organization, according to Town Manager Michael Chammings. He said anyone interested in donating money to the pantry can contact the Town Office.
In January, about 1,000 people from more than 250 families went to the Oxford Recreation Center for free food from several local businesses. Other business pitched in money to buy food from Hannaford, which offered a discounted rate for the event.
About 40 volunteers helped and sent residents home with fresh produce, meats, breads and other items.
To receive food at the pantry, recipients will need a slip from the town, a church or from a group like Community Concepts confirming that they are receiving assistance or are having financial trouble.
Grover asked that anyone interested in donating food offer canned and dry goods that can be prepared easily.
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