Boxes of food sit ready for distribution at Maricopa Pantry. Three trailers have been provided to the local food bank by St. Mary's Food Bank in Phoenix. [Maricopa Pantry]

Jim and Alice Shoaf and their volunteers at the Maricopa Pantry have been helping feed the community for years.

St. Mary’s Food Bank plays a big role in that mission, providing at least half of the food distributed locally each week.

But the Phoenix nonprofit’s support for its Maricopa brethren went to another level this week to get the food flowing again.

Fire struck the Pantry on March 28, destroying three trailers and 40,000 pounds of food at the site it shares with Mountain View Community Church on West Papago Road in Hidden Valley. The church was not damaged.

The fire halted Maricopa Pantry’s Saturday distributions, though volunteers have made some door-to-door food deliveries in recent weeks.

St. Mary’s donated the use of three food trailers for as long as needed, making it possible for the Shoafs to resume their weekly food distributions at 8 a.m. this Saturday. Freezer and dry box trailers full of food were delivered to the site Wednesday and Thursday., and a third trailer, a refrigerated unit, was delivered Friday morning.

“It means a lot,” founder and CEO Jim Shoaf said Thursday, after the second trailer had been delivered. “I wouldn’t be able to get food out without these trailers. It would be impossible to open without them.

“And to be able to keep them until we get back on our feet,” he added, “it’s amazing what they are doing for us. I can’t thank them enough.”

With the leased trailers up and running, Maricopa Pantry will have 40,000 pounds of meat, 40,000 pounds of refrigerated foods and 40,000 pounds of dry goods ready to distribute on Saturday morning, Shoaf said.

He said he expects to serve at least 1,100 families who rely on the food bank for sustenance. Cars will be lined up in the pre-dawn darkness for the distribution, which will go from 8-11 a.m., he said. The Pantry is seeking volunteers to help.

Jerry Brown, director of public relations for St. Mary’s Food Bank, was in Maricopa on Thursday morning to drop off one of the trailers.

The Maricopa Pantry food bank in Hidden Valley was destroyed by fire on March 28. [Bryan Mordt]
“There are people in a precarious situation in an area without a lot of help,” he said. “We appreciate everything (Jim Shoaf) does out there.”

St. Mary’s provided about 40,000 pounds of food for Saturday’s distribution.

“We wanted to make sure he had enough to feed people this weekend,” he said.

Brown said the leased trailers will remain on site until Shoaf doesn’t need them anymore

Those looking to contribute, or volunteer may donate directly to the Pantry through PayPal at PayPal.me/maricopapantry or at Rebuild Fund for Maricopa Pantry Fire (gofundme.com)

Read more about Jim Shoaf’s future plans for Maricopa Pantry in the May issue of InMaricopa magazine.

Maricopa Pantry distribution
Saturday, April 23
8-11 a.m.
50881 W. Papago Road
Hidden Valley

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