Inside the new Fresh Start Market food pantry, shelves were packed with canned vegetables and fruit, bags of pasta and cartons of cereal.
People could come to get frozen chicken or pork, quarts of soup and pre-prepared tuna fish salad. Bins of fresh carrots, apples, potatoes, onions and peppers encouraged clients to load up on fresh items.
The Franciscan Health food pantry may not be very large — about 12-feet-by-12-feet in total — but already, it has had a big impact on the community.
“It’s small but mighty,” said Kate Hill-Johnson, administrative director for community health improvement for Franciscan Health.
In the fight against hunger in Johnson County, the Fresh Start Market program has emerged to help feed the need. The pantry is aimed at addressing hunger on the southside of Indianapolis, particularly for people with health issues requiring special diets.
Hospital leadership, health officials and more came together Friday for the dedication of the Greenwood-based pantry. With the opening, those involved hope to reduce, and ideally eliminate, food insecurity in the area.
In giving the blessing to the new pantry, Fr. James Barrand of Spiritual Care Services spoke of God’s mercy being a form of “aggressive love.”
“That’s what this is — aggressive love towards our neighbors, our co-workers, people who find themselves challenged to find good and nutritious food for themselves,” he said. “We can help them in doing that.”
Officials agree that too many people in Johnson County and surrounding areas don’t have reliable access to food. According to Feeding America, food insecurity impacts more than 8.1% of Johnson County residents and 7% of Marion County residents.
Even with a robust network of pantries and food distributions in the county, the need remains greater than ever, Hill-Johnson said.
“It’s not that there aren’t any other food pantries here. But we knew we could do something unique that would also help those other food pantries,” she said.
Franciscan Health leadership has recognized the strain food insecurity puts on the community, which led to the creation of the Fresh Start Market, Hill-Johnson said.
They identified the communities where the health care system operates that struggle the most with hunger and have limited community resources to address poverty. About a year ago, the first Fresh Start Market opened in Hammond, followed shortly by another in Crown Point.
A southside Indianapolis location was planned as the third food pantry, Hill-Johnson said.
The Fresh Start Market is supported in part by a partnership with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, the Community Health and Wellness Fund of the Franciscan Health Foundation and a $10,000 grant from the Hoover Foundation. The southside location had a soft opening in April.
“It’s been really interesting in the last few weeks to see who is using it, what those commonalities that we’re seeing, so that we can better tailor our offerings to the people who are coming and using it,” Hill-Johnson said.
The Fresh Start Market is housed inside Franciscan Health’s Sierra Building, a complex located off Emerson Avenue in Greenwood. The market will be open from 2 to 5 p.m. every Thursday, and clients can choose the items that best fit them. Staff members are available to help people if they need it, though.
No prior registration is needed — people can just show up, Hill-Johnson said.
“We’re very low barrier,” she said. “We don’t have any significant requirements.”
The offerings at the pantry are centered around medically necessary diets, such as low-salt, low-sugar and gluten-free, Hill-Johnson said. Clients can also find culturally appropriate foods, catering to the large number of immigrants and refugees who live in the community.
“Those are a work in progress; it takes a while to get that sourcing lined up. But we’re really focused on how can we do those things really well,” Hill-Johnson said. “That way, other food pantries can send people to us that (need items that) aren’t traditionally available in those pantries.”
Fresh Start Market organizers have partnered with Franciscan Health clinicians to better serve clients, giving health care staff options to recommend their patients to the food pantry if they need it.
In addition, clients can meet with community health workers who can help them connect to other resources they need. Nutrition education and resources, such as a shopping tips, are also available at the pantry.
“No one is just food insecure and everything else is fine,” Hill-Johnson said. “So our aim is to look at how do we provide you food while you need it, but also how do we remove the barriers that are creating food insecurity.”
Since opening on April 27, the southside Fresh Start Market has served 343 households, recommended through Franciscan Health care providers. With the lessons they’ve learned thus far, and seeing the kinds of foods that people are most in need of, they’re ready to serve the wider community moving forward, Hill-Johnson said.
“This is our mission. It’s who we are as an organization. We’re committed to serving the most vulnerable, and this is an example of that,” she said. “When you think about people who are food insecure and have medical needs related to food, that is tough.”
AT A GLANCE
Fresh Start Market
What: A new healthy food pantry where those in need can shop free of charge.
Who: Franciscan Health, supported in part by a partnership with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, the Community Health and Wellness Fund of the Franciscan Health Foundation and a $10,000 grant from the Hoover Foundation.
Where: Franciscan Health Sierra Building, 1040 Sierra Drive, Greenwood
When: Open 2-5 p.m. Thursdays
Who can take part: Anyone can come to take advantage of the food pantry
