Aquia's Pantry

The vision of an Aquia Church parishioner in 2017, Aquia’s Pantry started with a few bags of rice and bagels from Panera’s Day-End Dough-Nation for guests to take home after enjoying a meal at Aquia’s Table. The Pantry now offers about 4 bags of food to 140 families every Wednesday evening from 6 to 7 P.M. during our drive-through pantry. Our volunteers pick up food from eight local grocery stores, restaurants, and convenience stores during the week, all coordinated through the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank. We then receive additional supplies from the Food Bank to top off our needs. On Wednesdays, the great hall of the Christian Formation and Fellowship Building is a beehive of activity as our 20 plus volunteers deliver and weigh donations from stores, then sort, fill, and stage the bags of food. We prepare for each family a bag containing both bread and desserts, a bag of fresh produce, a bag with 4 pounds of frozen meat (if available) and another with non-perishable groceries. We often receive eggs, milk or juice which also get handed out that evening.

Cars begin to line up as early as 4 P.M. and wrap around the cemetery. Families start to receive their gifts at 6 P.M. First, they stop to pick up individual, hot take-out meals prepared by Aquia’s Table. Then they come up to the front doors of the Christian Formation and Fellowship Building to receive the groceries, and a few extras including a bag of candy for each child. We are so grateful to God for all the gifts of food that He provides weekly. We are also grateful for all our volunteers who are the hands and feet of Our Lord as we pass His gifts of food on to our guests. We gladly accept all donations, both monetary and in-kind, offered to the Pantry to help fight the food insecurity our guests are experiencing. For further information on how you can become involved in Aquia’s Pantry, contact Mary Jane Cole.

Mary Jane Cole
( maryjane@cfsw.biz )
Aquia’s Pantry
Aquia Episcopal Church
2938 Richmond Highway
Stafford, VA 22554
540-659-4007