DEVINE, Texas — Update: The Devine community stepped up to the plate when the town's food pantry asked for help to purchase a new building.
One day after the story ran on KENS 5, a local organization, the Devine Hospice Thrift Store, donated $10,000 to the pantry.
In response to the donation, a representative with the pantry said, "This is why the Devine slogan is 'A little town with a big heart!'
"The pantry also received donations on their GoFundMe page.
The foundation of a dream lies within those who believe in it. For the Devine Food Pantry, that believer is founding member Shirley Crouse.
"Fifteen years ago, we saw this need. We were very small then, and now we serve somewhere between 400-450 families a month," the volunteer recalled.
Having served 15,000 people last year alone, the Devine Food Pantry is a service that's much needed in the community despite its close calls of closure.
"We've had several times we've been in a building that is sold, and the new owner didn't want to extend a lease to us and so we're left without a space." Kirsten Bates the pantry's Donation & Event Coordinator said on Sunday,
Recently, pantry volunteers worried that may be the case again, but instead they got a different proposal.
"The owner of the building has offered to let us purchase," Bates said.
"This is significant for us because we don't have that in the back of our minds anymore, that we're going to be homeless again. This is our permanent home."
For the first time in 15 years, the Devine Food Pantry is getting the opportunity to have a lasting presence in Medina County, but it comes at a cost.
A GoFundMe page has been created to help raise $10,000 dollars that would help with the purchase of the building and some updates to the facility.
"This is a godsend," Crouse said as she watches her dream gain permanent residency. "It really is a blessing."
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