Cartwright’s community center adds new pantry for seniors

SHERMAN, Texas (KXII) -In just a year, what started with just one pantry stocked with food to a community center serving three hot meals a week; the Cartwright Community Resource and Event Center has grown in multitudes.

Founder, Dotti Holman said, “the difference that nutrition is making in this area is amazing.”

And the newest addition is the pantry located inside the center that focuses on giving back to seniors in need.

Holman said, ”we are partners with the Oklahoma Regional Food Bank, in Oklahoma City and Wednesday we will be picking up 2,700 pounds of food that we purchase from them for our senior food pantry and for our emergency food pantry.”

And the pantry is stocked with non-perishable, ready to eat items, “you can eat it straight out of the can,” said volunteer Kenneth Booe.

Or there are items in the fridge and freezer if you are able to make a hot meal, ”there’s thing in there that you also can cook, you can bake a cake, you can make things, so it’s good for either or, so we have an option” Booe said.

The center is also open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday where you can enjoy a prepared hot meal.

Holman said, “it’s also growing in them just a sense of hope and that they’re not forgotten because they feel really forgotten.”

The center also hosts movie nights and games like bingo for the seniors, “some of the people just love it, we sit around and just enjoy ourselves and just after the pandemic everybody was stuck at home, and it a place to just get out and come to get with other seniors,” added Holman.

The meals and items from the pantry can be delivered to seniors who are homebound, “we make a shopping list, and they check off of it, every week the items that they need,” Holman said.

While the center has rapidly grown in just a year, Holman isn’t slowing down.

In 2023, the center hopes to add a daycare and a computer center, ”we’re also hoping to get our water working so we can offer showers and laundry facility,” Holman added.

Holeman said the facility is always in need of volunteers.

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