August, 2008:

The De Soto, Kansas, Multi-Service Center food pantry, which feeds an average of 50 needy families a month, got aid from an unexpected source when its supplies were running low this summer. Jeremy Pryor created a “pancake feed” event for his project in the self-expression and leadership program to raise money for the needed food. The De Soto Explorer wrote a feature about the Pantry and the Pancake Feed recently, pieces of which appear below.

Pancake Feed to Help Replenish Multi-Service Center Food Pantry

July 10, 2008

by Elvyn Jones

There was plenty of room on the shelves at the De Soto Multi-Service Center’s food pantry Tuesday for more food.

De Soto Multi-Service Center director Jodi Hitchcock estimated the pantry, which serves an average of 50 families a month, had from a one- to two-week supply of food left.

And just as the shelves are getting lean, Hitchcock is expecting two drives to stock the shelves with enough food to take the pantry into September.The first is Johnson County government’s annual Feed the Need, which collects money for distribution to the county’s food pantries.

The other drive was unexpected. De Soto resident Jeremy Pryor is organizing a pancake feed to raise money for the pantry.

Pryor said the pancake feed would be from 7:30 to 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the De Soto Senior Center, 32905 W. 84th Street. The cost of the meal, which will include pancakes by Chris Cakes, sausage, orange drink and coffee, will be $6 for adults and $4 for children 12 and younger, he said.

“It’s just something I wanted to do,” the 34-year-old truck driver said. “I remember doing a pancake feed when I was a Boy Scout.

“I talked to Jodi. I know they are needing food. I’m doing it as a contribution to the community so they can feed those who need fed.”

Organizing the breakfast has been time consuming, Pryor said. But he said sponsors, especially Miner’s Market, Mike’s Liquor and Mid America Roadworks, have stepped up to help with donations.

“A little help here and there, and I’m hoping to get it all wrapped up so the money we raise Saturday can go toward the fundraiser,” he said. “It’s not about me, it’s about the community pitching to and all these sponsors.”

Hitchcock is impressed with Pryor’s effort, his modesty aside.

“He just came out of the blue,” she said. “He’s put a lot of work into making this happen.”

The community can reward Pryor’s work by showing up for the breakfast and also dropping canned goods in the container that will be on site, Hitchcock said.

“We’re just hoping everybody in town shows up,” she said. “Who doesn’t like pancakes?”

Kansas City resident Candace Vanice began her passion for helping victims of domestic violence by volunteering at a local shelter, teaching a physical fitness class. In so doing see saw first hand how much was still needed to support these victims.

When she took Landmark Education’s Self Expression & Leadership Program, she used her project as a vehicle to take this passion to the next level. She formed SILK Empowered (Strength, Independence, Love and Knowledge), and organization dedicated to providing these people a place to live, and programs to boost their confidence.

Vanice saw a huge need for this kind of assistance. According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, there are 57,000 cases of domestic violence reported every year in Kansas City and Missouri, and in one day alone in 2006, 139 requests for emergency shelter or transitional housing went unmet.

On July 11, SILK Empowered held an upscale fundraiser, with food donated by the local Capital Grille. The event was an enormous success–Over $40,000 was raised to help SILK get off the ground. Most of the funds are being saved for a transitional living facility, while the rest is being used for self-esteem and home ownership programs.

To get involved, go to the SILK Empowered website or call 816-268-4722.