The Borrowed Car

Catherine’s car was in the shop.

Which doesn’t sound like much of a story.

Until you need groceries.

Then a broken car can become a locked door.

So Catherine did what people do when life gets inconvenient and the refrigerator doesn’t care.

She borrowed her sister’s car.

Not for a vacation.

Not for a night out.

Not to go shopping for something fun.

For food.

That detail has stayed with me.

Because we talk a lot about hunger as if hunger is simply an empty stomach.

Sometimes it is.

But sometimes hunger looks like a dead battery.

A transmission repair you can’t afford.

A gas gauge leaning toward empty.

A long stretch of highway between your kitchen table and the nearest place that can help.

Before Catherine could even think about the price of groceries...

...she had to solve the problem of getting to them.

And that’s when something hit me:

Sometimes the biggest obstacle between a family and food isn’t money.

It’s miles.

That’s one reason Silver City Gospel Mission has been taking food beyond our own front door.

Our Pantry to the People refrigerated van allows us to bring groceries closer to people who may not have a reliable car, enough gas, or someone they can ask for a ride.

In other words...

Instead of telling someone who is already struggling,

“Find a way to get here,”

we can say,

“We’re coming your way.”

I think there’s something beautiful about that.

A refrigerator on wheels probably won’t ever make the evening news.

But somewhere down the road...

...a mother may open a bag of groceries.

...an older neighbor may not have to choose between gas and food.

...someone may avoid making that uncomfortable phone call asking to borrow a car.

And for a little while, one burden gets lighter.

That’s what your support can do.

It can turn diesel fuel into dinner.

Miles into meals.

A van into an answer to prayer.

And a stranger into a neighbor who suddenly realizes:

Someone thought about me before I even got here.

If you’d like to help keep Pantry to the People rolling toward families who need it, please support The Silver City Gospel Mission today.

Because nobody should need a borrowed car just to put food on the table.

-Randy Salars.

P.S. The next time you see our refrigerated van heading down the road, remember this: it isn’t just carrying food.

It’s carrying one less obstacle between a neighbor and dinner.

The next Pantry To The People will be held in Hurley on Aug. 26th from 10 am to 11 am at the Hurley Park.

P.S.S. Our refrigerated van was graciously provided by Roadrunner Food Bank of New Mexico, please thank them for us!