ROANOKE, Va. – A Roanoke food pantry is confronting something it has never faced before: completely empty shelves.
St. Francis House, which operates under Commonwealth Catholic Charities Southwest Virginia, relies on monthly USDA food distributions for about 50% of its total resources. But those deliveries have been shrinking steadily since the start of the year, and for the first time, the pantry has been forced to turn people away.
Shelves sit empty for more than a week
Lucy Enge, development officer for Commonwealth Catholic Charities Southwest Virginia, described the scene inside the USDA food distribution room.
“Usually you’d see this room completely piled high,” Enge said. “Cereal would be stacked up, and that would last us the month.”…