Good Hope Family Fellowship is a small church in Scroggins, Texas, with about 100 members. It began as a home church in 2012 and was officially launched in 2016. From conception, Pastor JP Jobe and the members had a passion to serve our community in the area of food insecurity, so for years, the church set aside money each month to open its own food pantry.
That dream became a reality in 2022, and we just celebrated our four-year anniversary. We started the pantry in a 300-square-foot building, just passing out boxes to those in need. After about a year, we qualified for food assistance from the East Texas Food Bank. As the need continued to grow, our church members constructed a one-thousand-square-foot building to house a new pantry where our clients could shop and make their own choices. Our pantry is funded by giving from our congregation, with some help from The Gathering in Mount Vernon. On a monthly Saturday, you will see upwards of twenty volunteers serving our community. We even have members of other churches from Saltillo and Purley come out and help.
There is something for everyone to do, from picking up food to checking in clients, signing people up, helping people shop and bag their groceries, distributing frozen food and produce, restocking shelves, breaking down boxes, and taking out groceries. We even get the kids involved. We also have a couple of Spanish-speaking volunteers for our Hispanic clients. We try to be eco-friendly by distributing reusable cloth bags. Clients who return their bags receive a special treat, such as chocolates or cookies.
We pray for our clients and assist with other needs. In some cases, we can accommodate special diets. We also have a birthday program for ages 1– 12, which includes a party kit and a small gift for the child. Vicki Anderson, our director, who has a never-ending passion for this ministry, says, "Our pantry is recognized for being caring and focused on Christ." We love our clients, and it brings us great joy to see them returning every month knowing that we are filling not only a physical need but also a spiritual need.”
