Valley View Students, Staff Help Distribute Free Thanksgiving Meals

Dozens of Valley View students and staff were at the DuPage Township Food Pantry Tuesday distributing meals to more than 1,300 families in need.

Several dozen Valley View School District 365U students and staff were among the scores of volunteers helping the DuPage Township Food Pantry hand out free Thanksgiving meals to more than 1,300 families in need Tuesday. “We want to help as many people as we can,” said DuPage Township Supervisor Bill Mayer. “With the way the economy is right now, we have more and more people in DuPage Township coming to us.” Everyone received enough food to serve 8 to 10 people on Thanksgiving Day with volunteers separating, packing and distributing everything. “It makes me feel good because I get to help people at Thanksgiving,” said Brooks Middle School sixth-grader Elisha Armstrong, who was there with his 7th grade sister, Autumna, collecting …

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WGN Radio, Chicago Blackhawks Host Food Drive at DuPage Township Pantry

WGN Radio and the Chicago Blackhawks will host the event between 9 a.m. and noon at the DuPage Township Food Pantry in Romeoville.

WGN Radio and the Chicago Blackhawks will host a food drive at the DuPage Township Food Pantry Tuesday. The event will take place from 9 a.m. and noon. It's part of the WGN Radio Hometown Voices Tour, presented by Allstate. Bill Leff will broadcast live from the food pantry, located at 719 Parkwood Avenue in Romeoville. The food drive is open to the public and people are encouraged to stop by and donate cash, checks payable to DuPage Township Food Pantry and/or packaged food for needy families this holiday season. Those that donate will have the chance to meet and receive an autograph from Blackhawks Head Coach Joel Quenneville, Blackhawks radio color-analyst Troy Murray, or Blackhawks television color-analyst and recent inductee to the US…

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DuPage Township Food Pantry Needs Volunteers for Thanksgiving Distribution

The DuPage Township Food Pantry needs volunteers to pass out Thanksgiving meals Tuesday at its facility in Romeoville.

DuPage Township Food Pantry Needs Volunteers for Thanksgiving Distribution

The DuPage Township Food Pantry needs volunteers to pass out Thanksgiving meals Tuesday at its facility in Romeoville.

Looking to volunteer near Bolingbrook for Thanksgiving? The DuPage Township Food Pantry staffers are expecting a high turnout for this year’s Thanksgiving distribution, set for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 20. Volunteers are needed to assist with setup and passing out meals at the distribution at the pantry, 719 Parkwood Drive in Romeoville. A boxed Thanksgiving meal including turkey, potatoes, cranberry sauce, stuffing, vegetables and pie, will be passed out to hundreds of families that day. Volunteers must pre-register by calling the pantry at 815-886-7986. Volunteers cannot just show up during the distribution.  Can't volunteer but want to donate? WGN will be on hand Tuesday for a food collection drive.  The pantry will accept …

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Pantry to Host Breakfast with Santa

Dec. 17 event will allow kids to mingle, take photos with Santa Claus.

For some families, Breakfast with Santa is an annual tradition. But for others who are facing tough times financially, it's gotten too costly to share a meal with the jolly old elf. So this year, the DuPage Township Food Pantry is helping out by hosting a free Breakfast with Santa event for clients. The event is set for Saturday, Dec. 17, at the Holiday Inn in Bolingbrook, according to staff member Tracey Mayfield. "A lot of families that usually aren't able to take their kids to breakfast with Santa [can come]," Mayfield said. "We're opening it up to our food pantry families." In years past, the pantry has hosted dinner with Santa. This year, the organization made the shift to breakfast. Families can sign up during the pantry's weekly …

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Dismal U.S. Jobs Outlook Felt Locally

May saw weakest employment growth since September—but local organizations say job front isn't all bad.

Slower-than-expected jobs growth and a stagnant unemployment rate mean continued demand on local agencies that struggling residents. Unemployment and underemployment continue to plague Romeoville and Bolingbrook, according to Shirley Grzenia, supervisor of the DuPage Township Food Pantry. On Friday, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released a report showing that the U.S. added 54,000 new jobs in May — far fewer than expected by economists. The national employment rate remained largely unchanged, rising one-tenth of a point to 9.1. percent. The numbers didn’t surprise Grzenia, who estimated the pantry serves 1,000 families each month. Many are new clients. “It’s new people,” she said, and it’s not just unemployed residents who are …

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There’s No Place Like Home: DuPage Township Food Pantry Moves Back In

Eight months after being displaced by the Enbridge oil spill, the food pantry is once again serving residents out of its Parkwood Drive facility.

They serve residents in need, working to make sure no family goes hungry. But after a near-catastrophic oil spill, it was the DuPage Township Food Pantry that needed help. Last fall’s Enbridge oil spill dumped more than 450,000 gallons of oil near Route 53 and Parkwood Avenue, displacing local businesses, as well as the pantry, located at 719 Parkwood. Staffer Sherri Penrod was the first person to realize something was amiss the morning of Sept. 9, 2010. “It was a Thursday morning,” Penrod remembered. Looking out onto Parkwood Avenue, Penrod noticed what looked like water in the roadway, just beginning to creep up the pantry’s driveway. “We figured, ‘OK, we have a water main break,’” she said. But a second trip outside revealed to Penrod …

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