Faith Food Pantry Benefits From Caraluzzi’s Donation

By Nancy K. Crevier

“Oh, my! Oh, my!” The exclamation of a Faith Food Pantry volunteer, as he peered into the back of the Caraluzzi’s Market van, Tuesday morning, December 20, pretty much summed up the feelings of all of the volunteers at the St John’s Episcopal Church food pantry.

Caraluzzi’s Newtown Market delivered two pallets of canned and paper goods, including soups, vegetables, beef stew, pasta, pasta sauce, cereal, and paper towels to the Newtown Faith Food Pantry, Tuesday morning, in time for the holiday season.

“It’s a Godsend,” declared Faith Food Pantry organizer Lee Paulson. Even thought the pantry is currently fairly well stocked, thanks to the generosity of people during the holidays, Ms Paulson said that the heavier than usual demand this winter will deplete the cupboards quickly, making Caraluzzi’s generous donation particularly welcome.

Mark Caraluzzi, president and CEO for Caraluzzi’s Markets, Jen Caraluzzi-Dimyan, Paul Mariani, assistant store manager, and Joseph Brown, grocery manager, in Newtown carted hand truck after hand truck, loaded with goods, down the seven steep stairs that lead to the basement pantry. Every “clank, clank, clank” on the stone steps was like a welcome bell, heralding the arrival of items that would carry Newtown and Sandy Hook’s needy through the next several weeks.

The influx of shoppers on Tuesday morning had been particularly great, said Ms Paulson. “We have way more people shopping than we usually see this time of year. And there are more new faces all the time,” she lamented. “This donation will be most welcome as winter wears on,” she added.

Ms Paulson said that she was surprised by the scope of the Caraluzzi donation. “I was told they were going to donate, but I didn’t know how much,” she said. “It’s a very good surprise.” Finding a place to stack the cases of food and dry goods is exactly the kind of problem that the volunteers are happy to have, she said.

 “We’ve seen the articles of the increased demand and strain on the FAITH Food Pantry, and thought donating would be a nice way to commemorate surpassing the three-year mark of operating our market here in Newtown,” said Mr Caraluzzi, in a press release issued Tuesday.

Caraluzzi’s also works with the Brotherhood in Bethel, said Mr Caraluzzi, Tuesday morning, to provide goods to those in need there.

“It’s a hectic time of the year at the store, but to be able to pull back for a moment and do this is a great feeling,” Mr Caraluzzi said, as Mr Brown deposited the last of the donations near the shelving.

“Jen and I get hundreds of solicitations a week. This was an opportunity to do something we wanted to do, to do something we choose to do,” he said. “We are happy to do it.”

Caraluzzi’s Markets has supermarket locations in Bethel, Wilton, and Newtown, as well as a wine and spirits superstore, Caraluzzi’s Nutmeg Discount Liquors, in Bethel. It has been a family-owned and operated business for more than 62 years.