Greg Wilson/Anderson Observer
The Piedmont Emergency Relief Center is looking for food donations, financial donations and volunteers as dwindling supplies and growing demand strain its ability to feed hundreds of people each week, especially as the holidays approach.
PERC Director Maria Hollis said the center serves about 450-500 people from more than 200 households each Thursday. It receives another 15-20 applications for assistance each week. The center primarily provides food assistance to residents of Anderson and Greenville counties, along with part of Pickens County.
Although donations typically increase in November and December, the pantry needs help now to bridge the weeks before Thanksgiving.
“We’re seeing a very low amount of inventory right now to feed that many people,” Hollis said.
Peanut butter and spaghetti sauce are the most urgent needs, though the center welcomes other nonperishable foods. Hollis said shelf-stable items also have become harder to obtain and more expensive from the center’s regular food sources.
The organization’s donation list includes canned meat, vegetables, fruit, soup and pasta; macaroni and cheese; cereal; oatmeal; grits; jelly; and pancake mix. It also accepts toiletries, diapers and paper grocery bags.
Hollis said financial pressures are affecting both families seeking help and people who normally donate. Some recipients have returned after a year or more without needing assistance.
“It’s hitting both sides,” she said.
Financial contributions allow the center to purchase needed food and stretch donated dollars through its food sources, Hollis said, though rising prices are making that work more difficult.
Donations can be made online at perccares.org, which also has a link available through the center’s Facebook page. Contributions also may be mailed to P.O. Box 424, Piedmont, SC 29673. The center’s website provides information about financial giving.
Food donations can be delivered to the center at 3A Main St. Its posted donation hours are 9 a.m.-noon Monday and Tuesday, 2:300-6 p.m. Thursday and 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Saturday. Donors who need another time can call 864-845-5535 to arrange a delivery.
The Anderson County Library location at 1407 S.C. Highway 86 in Piedmont also accepts donations, as does The Coffee Mill at 1730 Highway 86, Unit C, according to the center’s website.
Volunteers are needed to help pick up food from grocery stores and assist with other work during the week, and Hollis encourages anyone interested to call to discuss available assignments. The center also lists food pickups and Monday food-box packing among its volunteer opportunities.
Hollis said the impact of that assistance is often apparent in messages from recipients.
One woman who arrived late to a recent Thursday distribution later thanked the center for helping her. The woman reported losing food assistance after her income rose slightly above an eligibility threshold and said the extra groceries would help carry her into November.
For Hollis, the message underscores why support cannot be limited to the holiday season.
The food donated in November and December helps sustain the center into the next year, she said, but families need assistance in every season.
“People are hungry year-round,” Hollis said. “That’s what I want people to understand more than anything.”
“And you might be one paycheck away from having to use a food bank,” she said. “You never know.”
