There are a lot of wonderful groups in our community dedicated to feeding the hungry.

We’re written about a lot of them over the past several months – Conduit Ministries, the St. Susan Center, Chautauqua County Rural Ministries, countless church food pantries and, most recently, the 5&2 Ministries.

The 5 Loaves and 2 Fish Ministry began in Clymer in 2016, and was started by a women’s Bible study that identified the need to help hungry children in the community. Jen Heiser, ministry president, said members realized that children would get their breakfast and lunch at school but then on the weekends or times like spring break they would go without food.

That need decreased somewhat during the COVID-19 pandemic, when federal programs resulted in many children receiving food for the following morning’s breakfast as well as for the weekends. When those programs ended, the need remained – and the 5&2 Ministry filled the need.

It’s struggling now to do so. What started as a Clymer ministry has expanded to Sherman, Bemus Point, Panama, the Hewes Center in Ashville, Maple Avenue Academy in Cassadaga, BOCES, and Randolph Academy Union Free School District with a total of 600 children each week receiving food.

“This is a need that will only grow,” Heiser told The Post-Journal recently. “We’ve seen it time and time again. This is not a ministry that fills a need for a short time and then goes away. We need help with raising money and donations to have the long term ability to be able to continue to sustain ourselves.”

In addition to money, Heiser said her organization needs volunteers to help pack the bags and boxes that are distributed to schools each week. Lack of volunteers is something we’re hearing a lot about these days – and helping the hungry is no exception.

Heiser and members of her church saw a need nine years ago and jumped into the gap to fill it. Now, the need is growing but their donations aren’t. In the short term we hope our community comes through for the 5&2 Ministry as it has so many times in the past when we’re reported on groups that need an extra boost.