By Payton Tholstrup
The Cloud County Resource Center offers a variety of services for low-income residents in Cloud County. Located at 107 W. 7th in Concordia, KS, it is a state-inspected, non-profit organization that is funded by the city, county, local grants, and donors from within the community. The center is operated under the guidance of a board of directors and Executive Director, Tonya Merrill. Merrill is in her 8th year as Executive Director and is a Concordia native who is passionate about the legacy she wants to build in her hometown. She has spearheaded many new projects, including three new pantries that have been launched this year.
The three pantries include The Homeless Pantry, the Expanded Hygiene Pantry, and the Infant Care Pantry. Each pantry was created to address increasing demands in the area and has been funded by fundraisers and local grants.
The Homeless Pantry offers services to individuals in Cloud County who do NOT have a physical or permanent address within the county yet. Accessible once every two weeks, it provides items that are easy to transport, require no cold storage, and involve little cooking. Participants are not required to present any documentation for services beyond an ID. Shelf-stable food items that do not require a can-opener are available; items such as mac and cheese, canned chicken and tuna, bottled water, bread, peanut butter, jelly, and more.
The Expanded Hygiene Pantry offers cleaning products and hygiene items. While the food bank always offered these items, the center received a large anonymous grant that now makes it possible to offer adult incontinence pads, bed pads, and other specialty hygiene items in addition to shampoo, conditioner, soap, laundry detergent, dish soap, feminine hygiene products, toothpaste, razors, and other personal hygiene items.
The Infant Care Pantry focuses on providing families with new babies and toddlers with additional diapers, wipes, and food. The food bank always carried some of these items as well, but demand has increased significantly over the years.
“These pantries are all accessible once a month at the Resource Center and can potentially be used in collaboration with regular food bank services as the situation applies,” Merrill said.
These services are only available to those in Cloud County.
For more information, to check eligibility for services, or to donate, please contact the Cloud County Resource Center at 107 W. 7th in Concordia or call 785-243-1065. You can also email them at ccrc@nckcn.com
