BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — First Christian Church in Bowling Green is hosting a community food bank to help those struggling in financially tough times.

Volunteers run the food bank, which has a diverse range of food, from freshly grown produce, canned goods, dry foods, and even pounds of meat.

“When you come around the corner, you get a cart and a personal shopper. The personal shopper is wearing an orange apron,” said Rev. Kyle McDougall, who serves as associate minister at First Christian. “As you can see, we’re very fancy.”

But this isn’t a typical food bank.

First Christian’s food bank treats their customers as family, and even encourages them to take as much produce as they can.

“When people come in they take a bag, and we encourage them to get whatever they want,” volunteer coordinator Julie Boca said. “We get a lot of our produce from Sam’s Club, Krogers and Myers.”

The food bank even has recipes for items that are not well-known.

“We also get things like this that are kind of unusual, shishito peppers. There’s a description here because sometimes people might not know how to cook shishito peppers,” Boca said.

But if someone is unhoused and does not have supplies to cook? The food bank is one step ahead by having a supply of foods that are edible without cooking.

In addition to providing food, the volunteers and workers at First Christian Church provide for their customers by allowing them to talk about their problems.

“People are having a hard time right now,” Boca said. “We just try and talk with them about what’s going on in their life. And see if there’s anything we can do to help them. Sometimes they might need some prayers or someone just to listen to them.”

McDougall also recognizes that a willingness to listen can go a long way.

“Sometimes you will see someone crying with their shopper or giving them a hug,” she said. “Just giving them the chance to talk to someone and share their life. Just having a listen ear can do a lot for a person.”