Garden of Health Food Bank distributes tons to Montgomery County pantries

UPPER GWYNEDD — As volunteers hauled items off the conveyer belt outside the Garden of Health Food Bank to take to food pantries, organizers of the two-day distribution event noted the importance as food pantries stock up for the holiday season and increased demand.

“These distributions are everything to these agencies. Some of these agencies … their doors would be closed without these distributions,” said Garden of Health Food Bank Founder and Executive Director Carol Bauer.

As holidays approach, families face ‘perfect storm’ of hardship and hunger in southeast PA

While the food distributions typically occur on a monthly basis at the organization off Church Road in Upper Gwynedd Township, Bauer acknowledged this was the second event this month. Bauer anticipated distributing between 30,000-and-40,000 pounds of food to around 60 participating organizations during the distribution, being held Wednesday and Thursday. Volunteers readied chicken, eggs, pork, produce, and other nonperishable items for food pantry representatives to pick up.

“We’re hoping that it allows the agencies to give out a little bit more food,” Bauer said. “A lot of them had to restrict the amount of food they were giving out because of the lack of donations coming in, and the increase in families coming in.”

More than COVID

Bauer estimated more than 100,000 people experience food insecurity in Montgomery County. Some 63,000 families also rely on federal food assistance funds.

“Throughout the year we’ve seen there are actually more individuals now food insecure in Montgomery County than there were during COVID,” Bauer said, noting “the rise of need” has continued to accelerate.

Bauer started the Garden of Health Food Bank a decade ago to help around 70 food pantries across Montgomery County. The warehouse will “typically have about three tractor trailers of food at any given time,” which Bauer said translates to around 60,000 pounds.

Garden of Health Food Bank Founder and Executive Director Carol...

Garden of Health Food Bank Founder and Executive Director Carol Bauer stands for a picture inside a warehouse in Upper Gwynedd Township during a food distribution event. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

Volunteers bag apples on Dec. 10, 2025 inside the Garden of Health Food Bank in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

Boxes of food donations are pictured on Dec. 10, 2025 outside the Garden of Health Food Bank in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

Volunteers pick up food items from the Garden of Health Food Bank on Dec. 10, 2025. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

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The organization gave out 2.1 million pounds of food last year, according to Bauer, and expects to dispense 2 million pounds this year. Bauer noted a staggering 300 percent increase over the 586,000 pounds distributed in 2023.

Hunger Action Summit: Montgomery County food pantries reflect on concerns

Food insecurity concerns were exacerbated during the 43-day-long federal government shutdown, which threatened assistance for many who rely on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program dollars. Bauer said participating food pantries saw a 25 percent increase during the government shutdown.

Jenkintown partnership

The Jenkintown Food Cupboard in Jenkintown, which partners with the Garden of Health Food Bank, recorded an average of 400 families seeking food assistance last month, conditions which Executive Director Lino Ellis called “extreme.” A roughly 33 percent increase was reported in October, serving around 300 families at the nonprofit located at 328 Summit Ave. in Jenkintown.

“We’re seeing higher, larger families coming to us, families repeatedly coming to us more often than we ever had,” Ellis said. “When you’re seeing the prices rise, suddenly raising six people without using the food bank every week becomes really impossible, and the people who used to come once a month are coming every week.”

SNAP pause

The delayed state budget, federal government shutdown and reduction in food assistance programs have impacted food supplies and intensified consumer concerns as area residents deal with the ongoing cost of living crisis, Ellis observed.

Around 50 percent of funds for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s The Emergency Food Assistance Program was paused earlier this year. The initiative would typically provide $500 million to food pantries in the U.S. each year, according to a Pittsburgh Post-Gazette report. Ellis also expressed concern that “lower [State Food Purchase Program] funds” and decreased “farming and procurement funds” have impacted operations locally.

“As we see all of those things reduced, we’ve seen the squeeze of people feeling that, seeing what’s at the grocery store,” Ellis said.

Maryann Brophy, a volunteer at Garden of Health Food Bank...

Maryann Brophy, a volunteer at Garden of Health Food Bank in Upper Gwynedd Township, bags apples during a food distribution event on Dec. 10, 2025 at the warehouse in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

Packaged food donations are loaded inside a vehicle on Dec. 10, 2025 during the Garden of Health Food Bank’s food distribution event in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

Volunteers with Emmanuel Lutheran Church, of Souderton, gather for a photo on Dec. 10, 2025 while at a Garden of Health food distribution event in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

The Souderton-based Emmanuel Lutheran Church volunteers receive food donations from the Garden of Health Food Bank on Dec. 10, 2025 during a food distribution event in Upper Gwynedd Township. (Rachel Ravina – MediaNews Group)

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Souderton volunteers

Dave Blaich, a volunteer at the Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Souderton, shared Ellis’ concerns as he helped load up apples, eggplant and squash into a vehicle Wednesday afternoon to take back to serve those in need.

“I’m here because there’s a need for food distribution or community,” Blaich said. “There’s a lot of people that are struggling to make it day-to-day, and by getting a little extra food, maybe they can stretch their dollar to pay a bill or something like that.”

The church’s E-Meal program began during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Blaich, with six volunteers serving daily lunches and offering food pickups each Saturday at the church, located at 69 W. Broad St.

Blaich said the church food program typically gives out food to between 250 and 300 families in a given week, but had around 337 families pick up food for the Thanksgiving holiday.

The organization brought on dozens more to handle the increased demand, according to Blaich, with its volunteer force now standing at 50 people. Ellis’ nonprofit also “brought on 60 new volunteers” to meet the growing needs of community members.

This supplemental food distribution event allows food pantries to replenish their supplies from Thanksgiving and stretch inventories throughout December’s holiday season.

While the organization also procures food from local grocery stores and other sources, Blaich stressed the importance of partnerships with organizations to fill in the gaps. “It’s vital,” he said.

“I think it’s very important. Garden of Health is one of the best resources we have in this area,” Blaich said, recalling how the initiative evolved “into this huge distribution” once the Garden of Health Food Bank and Jenkintown Food Cupboard “joined forces.”

“When people look at Montgomery County, and don’t see the homeless, [they think] there are no people who are food insecure unless they’re in Norristown or Pottstown, and that’s just wrong. There are homeless in every area of Montgomery County that you just don’t see them,” Bauer said. “They’re either living in tent cities in the woods or they’re sleeping in their cars. We need to realize as a community we need to support our community, and make sure that nobody in our community goes hungry…”