Mary Schaefer, director of operations at West Side Community Services, is stocking shelves at Provisions 139, the organization's food pantry at 44 Breckenridge St. The pantry serves residents living in these zip codes 14201, 14209, 14213, and 14222 and is open on Wednesdays from 12-3 p.m. and Thursdays from 5-7 p.m. It will be closed on Christmas and New Years Day. Instead, it will be open on Saturday, Dec. 28 at noon for special giveaways that include prepacked bags of food and other items. Provisions has been serving the West Side since 2021. Schaefer said Provisions does accept donations and relies on FeedMore WNY and a five-year contract with the New York State Department of Agriculture where it receives over $100,000 a year to spend on food grown, raised, and produced in New York State. If you are looking to donate, the pantry can use non-food items like toiletries or cleaning supplies, or food not covered by the grant like sugar, flour, and coffee. By Alex Miley
