Imagine the cabinet shelves empty, the refrigerator bare and the freezer vacant. Stomachs growling, bodies weak. That would be the case for some of the Ironton community without the help of organizations that have a passion for meeting needs.

Colleen Massey is the director of the Downtown Food Pantry, located inside First United Methodist Church at 101 N. Fifth St. in Ironton. She said the pantry saw 400 people last month.

“We’ve been low on donations,” Massey said. “With the economy and food costing more than it did, it shows up even more.”

Massey said people using their pantry are usually referred once a month by the Community Action Organization and other places. However, she said if any homeless person needing food comes in, they give it to him or her.

She said the pantry is supplied by people giving donations of money, as well as local churches helping to fill the shelves. Sometimes a business will step up to help as well.

That happened when the South Point Walmart donated around 1,500 items to the food pantry on Friday morning.

“That’s something we really needed, because we were getting low,” Massey said. “That will help us for a couple of weeks.”

Steve Dillow, operations assistant manager at the South Point Walmart, said he saw a newspaper article about the food pantry and started talking to management to see if there was a way they could help.

Along with Ron Bowen, Christina Moore and Bambi Henson of Walmart, fundraisers were started among the employees.

Employees were given the opportunity to wear jeans and their favorite college shirts to work on three different game days for a $2 donation. Employees were also given their choice of a new lanyard for their nametags for a five-can donation. Some employees chose to bring in canned goods simply to help the cause.

“We are still collecting through Nov. 1,” Dillow said. “One lady just brought in three cases of soup this week. More are finding out about it. All our associates are caring and have a big heart.”

Massey said the people who receive these items from the food pantry are very appreciative.

“They really are. Some of them say they wouldn’t have anything if we didn’t give them that,” she said.