The worldwide “Little Free Pantry” movement will soon have one of its newest sites in Geneseo, NY.
The Wadsworth Library has given permission to a group of private citizens to place a small pantry on its property. The pantry will offer food and other non-perishables such as toothpaste, toilet paper, etc. to anyone in need.
Anyone can leave or take an item at the pantry. The pantry is accessible 24/7, anonymously and as often as someone needs it. The pantry is not meant to replace larger food pantries that have a much more comprehensive inventory, but to supplement their important role in alleviating food insecurity.
Geneseo’s Little Free Pantry is an effort of a number of community volunteers, led by Deb Allen. The pantry is installed in memory of her daughter, Claire Allen, a Geneseo Central School student who was killed while running cross-country practice on her second day of high school in 2017.
Claire was a very community-minded student, and social justice was a favorite cause of hers. Funding for the construction of the pantry comes from money donated for another effort in Claire’s name, “Claire’s Closet,” which in past years has offered gently used prom dresses for area girls.
Last year’s and this year’s prom dress giveaway day were canceled due to the pandemic, but an abundance of generous financial donations meant that the spirit of giving in Claire’s name could be expanded to other, year-round efforts like this.
Also helping this wonderful community effort are Debby Emerson, the Wadsworth Library Director whose support for hosting the pantry on library property has been essential; and Deb MacLean, the manager of the Geneseo-Groveland Food Pantry, hosted at the Central Presbyterian Church across the street from the Wadsworth Library three days a week.
“I guess maybe it’s just a ‘Deb’ thing, right?” Deb Allen jokes about all three volunteers helping to get this idea off the ground sharing the same first name.
The Little Free Pantry slogan is “Take What You Need, Leave What You Can.” First begun by a woman in Fayetteville, Arkansas in 2016, it has blossomed into a grassroots movement in six countries and over 1,500 sites.
