The Share Food Share Love food pantry in Brookfield brought back its successful initiative from last year to push shopping carts in the village’s Fourth of July parade, though leaders say it didn’t make as big of a splash this year.
“Last year, we had almost 20 full shopping carts full of food, but this year, I think we didn’t hit the mark,” said John Barnett, the pantry’s communications and marketing director.
The effort was both symbolic and practical, officials said, with the empty carts encouraging viewers to donate food items on the spot while also representing the empty pantries and fridges plaguing those experiencing food insecurity.
“Thousands of our neighbors are experiencing food insecurity for various known reasons,” John Dumas, the pantry’s administrative director, said in a written statement. “Our food pantry’s urgent mission is to provide a welcoming grocery store shopping experience. [It is] a neighborly place where you can fill your shopping cart with the food you want, need and deserve.”…