Helping Salem Ohio Set the Table
see how in Photo Galleries below
Click DONATE NOW to send your financial contribution.
[Link here] to donate your vehicle to support The Pantry.
Shopping Days and Times
The Salem Community Pantry is located at 794 East Third Street in Salem, Ohio, on the corner of Third & Vine.
(See map below.)
Shopping Days and Times:
Monday, 9 am to 11:30 am.
Thursday, 3 pm to 5:30 pm.
Salem Pantry is closed December 24, 25, 31, January 1, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day.
Heavy snow storms, other dangerous weather conditions, and electricity outage might cancel Pantry services. If the Salem Schools are closed due to weather conditions or other unscheduled and unanticipated community-wide problems, or if there's a city-wide Parking Ban, the Salem Pantry will also be closed.
Updates posted on the Pantry Facebook page. [link here]
Eligibility to Shop
On grocery day, a Shopper provides information regarding name, address, and details about the composition of the family unit which we use for statistical analysis. A Shopper may shop at the Pantry up to 2 times per month. Income guidelines apply to determine shopping eligibility for individuals and families.
The Salem Pantry serves the 44460 Zip Code Zone. The Zip Code Map shows Salem, Ohio, and the surrounding area. [link here]
Help is available if you need food from other sources. Call 2 1 1. The 2-1-1 operator can tell you where to find a food pantry serving the area near your home. 2-1-1 answers 24 hours every day.
Call 2-1-1 for info on free food, housing, heating assistance, clothing, items for children, mental health services, alcohol and drug addiction services, family services, and more.
City of Salem Ohio government services [link here]
Visit Salem Ohio [link here]
Salem Ohio Wikipedia [link here]
shopping day procedure
You'll enter our lobby and take a number from our check-in table. While you're waiting for your shopping turn you can select a magazine to read from the magazine rack and enjoy a cold soft drink or water from the lobby cooler along with a snack. New toys, games, books, and coloring books, are provided for visiting children to select and take home.
When your number is called you'll register at the check-in desk and then be called to the Pantry grocery area. You'll receive a shopping cart and a Pantry Volunteer will escort you through the Pantry grocery area so you can select the items you want.
You can select fresh vegetables and fruit, meat, packaged and canned goods, and personal care products, when in stock. All items are provided free of charge.
When your shopping is complete our, Pantry Volunteers will help you load your groceries into your car.
a "choice pantry"
A "choice Pantry" means that the shopper selects his or her groceries the same way that they would while shopping at any other grocery store. Many Pantries prepare pre-selected groceries distributed in bags and boxes delivered to the shopper's car. The Salem Community Pantry gives the individual Shopper the opportunity to select exactly what the shopper wants, and this reduces waste of unwanted items. It's a lot more work providing an individual shopping experience for each of our Shoppers, but we discovered that it's a more satisfying experience for each Shopper to select what he or she wants and needs.
Volunteer jobs
There are a number of volunteer activities at the Salem Pantry. Volunteers gather food donations from local grocery stores and from the Second Harvest Food Bank.
Volunteers sort donated items and place items on shelves for later distribution. Some volunteers assist with cleaning, building and van maintenance, fundraising, office work, and serve as escorts when Shoppers are selecting their groceries.
Volunteer work hours are very flexible. Some of our volunteers work every day while others volunteer their services a few hours per week. Each volunteer decides his or her own work schedule.
Volunteers share their skills and talents to make the operation of the Pantry successful. We pride ourselves on maintaining a supportive and friendly experience for our Volunteers and for our Shoppers.
become a volunteer
You can call the Pantry Office at 330-332-5166 and leave a message for the Pantry Director. The Director will return your call to discuss Volunteer opportunities.
You can also visit the Pantry in person to see our operation for yourself. The best times to visit include:
-Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, between 9 am to around 11 am, and Wednesday between noon to 2 pm
(this is when we receive and sort food donations).
-Monday, between 8 am to around 12:30 pm
-Thursday, between 1 pm to around 6:15 pm
(this is when we prepare our shelves for the shopping distribution and conduct the shopping experience).
This year, our youngest volunteer is 14 years old, the oldest is 94.
arrange a tour
You can call the Pantry Office at 330-332-5166 to leave a message for the Pantry Director asking the Director to arrange a tour of the Pantry. The Director will return your call with tour details.
We're happy to conduct tours for individuals and organizations.
The Pantry Director can also present a speaking program for your club or organization so your group can learn more about The Salem Community Pantry and our services to the community.
other ways to help
Financial contributions help us purchase food and pay the necessary bills to keep the Pantry in operation. Donations are tax deductible. Checks can be made payable to the Salem Community Pantry and mailed to Post Office Box 222, Salem, Ohio 44460. See the "DONATE" button on this web site to send a quicker electronic donation.
Consider organizing a food drive. We gladly accept donations of canned and boxed food along with fresh vegetables and fruit from your garden. For your delivery convenience there's a large collection box located next to the Pantry entrance on Vine Street.
Your church, store, school, or business, can donate food and personal care items for distribution at the Pantry.
During the summer county fair season, generous people purchase pigs and cows at 4-H auctions, pay for the processing of the meat, and donate the fresh frozen meat to the Pantry for distribution to our Shoppers.
The Pantry needs plastic shopping bags and canvas shopping bags, along with clean empty egg cartons. These items can be placed in the collection box located next to the Pantry entrance on Vine Street.
[Link here] to donate your vehicle to support the Pantry.
food distribution statistics
The Slogan of the Salem Community Pantry is “Helping Salem Set the Table.”
* In 2024, approximately 6,048 Pantry shopping carts full
of food were loaded into Shoppers’ cars, bicycle baskets,
and pull-along wagons.
* On average, each Pantry shopping cart loaded with groceries provides 7 day’s worth of food, consisting of three daily meals (breakfast, lunch, and dinner). This is
21 table settings of meals.
* The 6,048 shopping carts provide approximately 127,008 table settings of meals. [ 6,048 shopping carts X 21 table settings of meals per cart = 127,008 table settings ]
* The number of family members served per shopping
cart is 3.26 on average.
* Approximately 414,046 plates of food are served from the shopping carts of groceries provided by the Pantry.
[ 127,008 table settings of meals X 3.26 family members eating the meals = 414,046 plates of food ]
* In 2024, The Pantry purchased 111,002 pounds of food
from Second Harvest Food Bank. We received another 330,236 pounds of food free from Second Harvest during Open Call pickup.
* The Pantry received 339,289 pounds of food donated by local Salem stores. The Pantry received an estimated 75,000 pounds of food from private local donations. The total food received, sorted, processed, and distributed in 2024 was 855,527 pounds from all sources (428 tons).
* The Pantry spent a total of $15,722.62 purchasing food from Second Harvest Food Bank.
* The average Second Harvest cost per family served was $2.60. The average Second Harvest cost per individual served was $0.79.
* The estimated value of the food contained in each family's shopping cart was between $200 to $300.
Honoring our foundation
The Salem Community Pantry was created as a non-profit public service community organization on October 14th, 2009. The participating entities that formed the Pantry were (in alphabetical order): Believer’s Christian Fellowship, Emmanuel Lutheran Church, First Baptist Church, First Christian Church, First Friends Church, First Presbyterian Church, Real Life Assembly of God, SAFCO (Salem Area Food for Children and Others), Southeast Friends Church, Saint Paul Roman Catholic Church, Salem United Methodist Church, and The Salvation Army. Each of these organizations was, to one degree or another, involved in providing food for those in the Greater Salem Community who needed assistance. These founding organizations created The Salem Community Pantry in an effort to combine resources and avoid working at cross-purposes. We honor their dedication to our community in establishing the Salem Community Pantry.
The Pantry logo includes the Pantry name surrounded by the outline of a slice of bread. It was created in 2010 and continues to serve as the recognizable symbol of the Pantry throughout the Salem community.
operating covenant
The Salem Community Pantry's Operating Covenant is "courtesy and civility at all times."
Everyone associated with the operation of the Salem Community Pantry agrees to respect the worth and dignity of Pantry guests, Shoppers, and Volunteers, understanding that it is an obligation to extend kindness and empathy in every interaction with those who may benefit from Pantry services or with those who provide Pantry services.
non-discrimination policy
The Pantry will not practice or permit any unlawful discrimination. In compliance with this Policy, the Salem Community Pantry does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion or creed, gender, gender expression, age, nation origin or ancestry, citizenship, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations.
How do we acquire food?
The Salem Community Pantry is a proud member of the Second Harvest Food Bank of the Mahoning Valley (Ohio).
[link here] The Second Harvest Food Bank provides food to the Salem Pantry at a fraction of the cost if purchased from a commercial grocery warehouse. The Second Harvest Food Bank also provides a significant amount of food to the Salem Pantry at no cost.
Our local food partners include Salem Aldi's, Salem Giant Eagle, Salem Marc's, and Salem Wal Mart. We could not function without their generous donations of food to the Salem Pantry at no cost to the Pantry.
Farmers, backyard gardeners, individuals, churches, civic groups, clubs, schools, the Post Office Food Drive, and other organizations donate food and funding to help the Salem Pantry operate.
During the summer County Fair programs, a few individuals purchase cows and pigs from 4-H Auctions, pay for the processing costs, and then generously donate the fresh frozen meat to the Salem Pantry for distribution to our Shoppers.
Financial donations from the community allow us to purchase food and personal care products that may be in short supply in our inventory.
The Salem Community Foundation [link here] and other granting programs including The Pearce Foundation and The Centofanti Foundation have provided generous continuing support to the Salem Pantry. The Stitle Construction Company of Salem [link here] along with their suppliers and business partners, and Beck Restoration [link here], have been instrumental in assisting the Salem Pantry with our Building Renovation Project.
Our Community Partners help to make the services of the Salem Pantry possible.
donate your vehicle to support the salem pantry
Do you have a vehicle you no longer need? Donate it to the Salem Community Pantry. Your vehicle will be turned into cash needed to operate the Salem Pantry.
All vehicles are considered! We accept all types of donated vehicles (running or not) including cars, trucks, trailers, boats, RVs, motorcycles, campers, off-road vehicles, planes, heavy equipment, farm machinery, and most other motorized vehicles.
Call 855-500-7433 to begin the easy donation process or click on the link below to go to the on-line donation form. [link here]
DONATE TO SUPPORT THE SALEM PANTRY
Your donation to The Salem Community Pantry helps us provide food to our Salem Neighbors.