from left: Joe Mitchneck, JCC volunteer; Mark Finkelstein, JCC volunteer and board member; Sam Clayton, Elks Lodge lecturing knight; Mary Theroux, Elks Lodge leading knight; Pam Mahalick, Elks Lodge secretary and organizer; Janet Finkelstein, JCC volunteer and board member; Karen Gaffney, Elks Lodge treasurer; Kim Casterline, Elks Lodge loyal knight; Russ Andrews; Elks Lodge trustee; Patrick Paralis, Elks Lodge exalted knight; Dorothy Peters, Elks Lodge trustee; and Jim Gillespie, JCC chief operating officer.
Margaret Roarty | Times Leader
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KINGSTON — Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Elks Lodge 109 Community Investment Program donated $8,000, along with dozens of baking supplies, to the Friedman Jewish Community Center’s food pantry Sara’s Table.
Members of Elks Lodge 109 presented the check, along with 86 baking kits, to volunteers and staff at the JCC Tuesday.
Janet Finkelstein, a volunteer at Sara’s Table, said the kits, consisting of a cookie sheet, cookie mix, frosting and sprinkles, will be a “real treat” for families this holiday season.
The food pantry, which is considered an emergency center, works to reduce hunger by providing healthy meals to needy families and individuals throughout the area.
According to Finkelstein, the $8,000 donation will go towards supplementing the food they receive from CEO. While Finkelstein said that CEO has been “so generous” by providing them with the majority of what they need, the reality is that the number of families who are in need and hungry has increased.
“Sometimes, we’ll get 60 (containers) of peanut butter, but we need 200. So, we need to buy the rest,” she said.
Sara’s Table regularly serves over 200 families a week.
Pam Mahalick, who serves as secretary for Elk’s Lodge 109 and organized the funding for the JCC, said that the Community Investments Program, which regularly invests millions of dollars in communities across the country, helps members give back to local areas.
“There’s a need in the community and the JCC is doing it, so we’re here to help,” said Mahalick.
