Kecia Campbell, an official with the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, speaks at Wednesday's ceremony inside the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry. "You guys deserve a round of applause for all of your hard work and diligence with this building," Campbell said.
Daisy Aguilar, housing coordinator at Chesapeake Multicultural Resource Center, thanks volunteers of the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry and thrift store on Wednesday. "You are not only just helping individuals, you鈥檙e building bridges, strengthening families and creating brighter futures for all of us," Aguilar said.
Mike Klein, a donor for the St. Vincent de Paul expansion project alongside his wife Nancy, reflected on the organization's growth in Easton from its humble start on Commerce Drive 15 years ago. "We were just wedged into this little warehouse. And look at it now, almost 10,000 square feet," Klein said.
St. Vincent de Paul volunteers joined with town, county and state officials on Wednesday to cut the ribbon on the expanded, nearly 10,000-square-foot facility in Easton.
The expansion of the St. Vincent de Paul facility in Easton adds over 2,000 square feet, including a relocated food pantry prepared to better accommodate residents in need.
St. Vincent de Paul volunteers packed the food pantry on Wednesday morning to celebrate the grand reopening of the expanded facility on Canvasback Drive in Easton. The chapter has over 300 volunteers and no paid employees.
Alex Handy, former president of the St. Vincent de Paul Easton chapter, left, receives a proclamation from John Plaskon, the current president. Handy served in the lead volunteer role for 16 years.
Talbot County Council President Chuck Callahan thanked St. Vincent de Paul volunteers on Wednesday, adding that the need around the community for food and medical assistance has "really touched (his) heart."
Kecia Campbell, an official with the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development, speaks at Wednesday's ceremony inside the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry. "You guys deserve a round of applause for all of your hard work and diligence with this building," Campbell said.
Mayor Megan Cook speaks at Wednesday's grand reopening of the St. Vincent de Paul facility in Easton. "We do need organizations like you in the community," Cook said.
Daisy Aguilar, housing coordinator at Chesapeake Multicultural Resource Center, thanks volunteers of the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry and thrift store on Wednesday. "You are not only just helping individuals, you鈥檙e building bridges, strengthening families and creating brighter futures for all of us," Aguilar said.
Alex Handy, former president of the Easton chapter of St. Vincent de Paul, speaks during Wednesday's ribbon-cutting ceremony for the nonprofit's expansion.
Mike Klein, a donor for the St. Vincent de Paul expansion project alongside his wife Nancy, reflected on the organization's growth in Easton from its humble start on Commerce Drive 15 years ago. "We were just wedged into this little warehouse. And look at it now, almost 10,000 square feet," Klein said.
九色视频 鈥 The completion of an expanded St. Vincent de Paul food pantry couldn鈥檛 have come at a better time for Talbot County residents in need.
John Plaskon, president of the Easton chapter of St. Vincent de Paul, said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday morning that Tuesdays and Saturdays 鈥 the pantry鈥檚 distribution days 鈥 are becoming busier.
鈥淭here鈥檚 more cars coming through lately than ever before,鈥 Plaskon said.
Volunteers for the nonprofit organization on Canvasback Drive will be better able to accommodate increased need thanks to a 2,560-square-foot expansion. Town, county and state officials joined St. Vincent de Paul to cut the ribbon Wednesday on a larger pantry, thrift store and advisory offices.
鈥淲e are a community of tremendous opportunity, and we鈥檙e very thankful for what we have,鈥 Easton Mayor Megan Cook said. 鈥淏ut we鈥檙e also a community of tremendous need. And the mission of St. Vincent de Paul really does help with that.鈥
Plaskon said after the event that the expansion project, led by Willow Construction, cost nearly $1.4 million. Between funds from the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development and Talbot County Council, and gifts from local donors, that mark was fully funded.
County Council President Chuck Callahan said acts of philanthropy in the county impress him, including St. Vincent de Paul鈥檚 work. Callahan chairs the board of the Neighborhood Service Center, a nonprofit on the other side of town.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a big effort on all of us, and that鈥檚 really what this community is all about,鈥 Callahan said.
The relocated food pantry allows volunteers more space to operate on busy pickup days. A refrigerator and freezer were added to the end of the food pantry, along with other new equipment.
St. Vincent de Paul broke ground on the expansion in August 2024. It was a three-phase endeavor that Plaskon said 鈥渇lowed pretty smoothly鈥 over the last year and change.
The nonprofit鈥檚 new thrift store has raked in more money, which goes toward the food pantry and advisory offices. Plaskon said weekly returns have risen 35% to around $9,000 a week.
Plaskon recently took over as president of the organization, which is made up of over 300 volunteers and has no paid employees. On Wednesday, he presented a proclamation honoring former president Alex Handy, who served in the role for 16 years.
Handy had similar praise for his successor.
鈥淚 am so grateful for having John step forward in that meeting and ever since, taking over this project,鈥 Handy said. 鈥淗e has done a miracle amount of work here, and I can鈥檛 thank him enough for steering us and steering this project to a wonderful culmination today.鈥
The Rev. James Nash, pastor of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Easton, speaks at the reopening ceremony of the St. Vincent de Paul food pantry.
KONNER METZ/STAR DEMOCRATJust before the ribbon was cut, the Rev. James Nash, pastor of Sts. Peter & Paul Church in Easton, told St. Vincent de Paul volunteers just how important they are to the community.
鈥淎 lot of the people on the day of food pickup, they will come here an hour and a half early or two hours early, just to sit,鈥 Nash said. 鈥淪o you not only provide food. ... You give people the chance to just shut down for an hour or an hour or 20 minutes. ... And you offer them a place to come that鈥檚 safe, where they feel heard, where they feel cared about.鈥
Nash said he鈥檚 seen other St. Vincent de Paul chapters during his career. The Easton one stands out.
鈥淣othing like this, nothing like this,鈥 Nash said of other chapters. 鈥淵ou all have a lot to be proud of.鈥
Reactions
Get any of our free email newsletters 鈥 latest headlines or latest obituaries
Explore newslettersTo view our latest e-Edition, click the image on the left.
To read this edition of Shore magazine, please click on the link above.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person.
Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.