COLUMBUS, Ohio- Sustainability has always been the principle behind the Bishop Griffin Resource Center, and the produce in this garden is actually used in their food pantry. But as the need to serve the community has grown during the pandemic, the group is looking to build an even bigger space to provide more resources.

“When it says resource in our name that was not in our original name, but we got called on to help people do so many other things than eat,” said Marg Telerski.

Telerski has been with Christ the King parish for 32 years. She helped open the food pantry in 2007 and remains a part of the organization that now serves people in five different Columbus zip codes.

“They may not be our physical neighbors, but they’ve certainly become our friends, it was fun being out there this morning I’ve been just here in the garden lately and I got to see grandbaby pictures, hear the latest stories about what’s going on at home,” said Telerski.

But as time has gone on, especially during the covid-19 pandemic, Pantry Manager Patty Rinehart says the need to expand continues to grow.

“Before the virus happened, we were serving between 450-500 families a month, and since the pandemic happened month, our numbers have more than doubled,” said Rinehart.

The food pantry has implemented a drive-through method to serve the community safely and efficiently. But, the work that goes into it remains a challenge because of space.

“During the pandemic, we’ve been receiving between eight and twelve thousand pounds of food from MidOhio foodbank plus produce. All of that comes in on pallets six feet high which we then have to carry by hand into the other room, so a new building would give us the space to work that we could bring it in and not move things around and adjust and shift because we’re using every corner of this building to maximum capacity so we can serve the families.”

And aside from just being a food pantry, the resource center offers clothing and household goods at its free store and has several partners that help serve the community. Pastor of the parish, Father David Schalk, says a new building will allow them to do even more.

“These are human services agencies that really want to reach out to so the community and know that the neighbors come here to the Bishop Griffin Resource Center. So those classroom spaces and office spaces, also going to have a space for food demonstrations like a teaching kitchen also,” said Schalk.

Telerski says the groups work is more than just feeding the community.

“It’s meant community it’s meant health so much more than just growing a tomato.”

For more information on the center or to support their expansion efforts, visit BishopGriffinResourceCenter.org.