Nurturing Community – Ruby’s Food Shelf, Siren

Ruby’s Food Shelf opened its doors in 2009 and over the years has provided more than 800,000 pounds of food to residents living in Siren and Webster School Districts. People who are in need of a “hand up” are able to come to Ruby’s Food Shelf once a month; however, we are considered an emergency food shelf and we never turn a hungry person away. Ruby’s Food Shelf is located in the back of Ruby’s Second Hand Store in Siren, and is open Mondays and Fridays, 10 a.m.-2 p.m., and Wednesdays, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.

Ruby’s Food Shelf is an outreach of Home And Away Ministries, a 501c3 Christian ministry. Our mission statement is “To procure and distribute corporate surplus food and goods to help fight poverty, hunger and disease in rural communities in the United States for those with low resources and in crisis through churches, food shelves and other local civic organizations.”

In 2022, an average of 133 people used Ruby’s Food Shelf each month, with each household provided an average of 55-60 pounds of food. This past year the number of people using Ruby’s Food Shelf has slowly been increasing and is expected to continue rising as families become impacted by inflation and cuts in federal food and health programs.

The majority of our food is donated by Ruby’s Pantry/Home and Away Ministries, and generally includes chicken, potatoes, bread, and a variety of other food items donated from their partnering corporations. Ruby’s Food Shelf is also grateful for the regular donations of food and dairy items from Fourwinds Market, Wayne’s Food Plus, local vegetable gardeners, and Bethany Lutheran Church in Siren. Financial donations from individual and local business donors are used to purchase food items that are not usually donated through Ruby’s Pantry (e.g., soup, peanut butter, flour, sugar, and small cans of fruit and vegetables). Ruby’s Second Hand Store covers utilities, rent, and general overhead costs.

Ruby’s Food Shelf is staffed by dedicated volunteers, so if you are looking for a way to give back to your community, stop by Ruby’s Second Hand Store/Food Shelf and fill out an application. For more information about Ruby’s Food Shelf, email infor@rubysheart.org, or phone 715-349-7253. You can also search for Ruby’s Food Shelf on Facebook.