CARIBOU, Maine — The Caribou Police Department donated 256 pounds of food to Catholic Charities this week, in honor of National Faith in Blue Day, which was on Oct. 10.
Officer Gerard Lemoine and administrator Laura Adams delivered the food to the Catholic Charities warehouse in Caribou on Wednesday, unloading bags and boxes full of soup, cereal and other dry goods out of a police SUV.
In the past year, Catholic Charities has been especially busy feeding the people of northern Maine, as economic instability during the pandemic raised the levels of food insecurity in the region.
Faith in Blue is an annual day set aside for law enforcement to give back to the community and build relationships with local organizations. The Caribou police rallied together to collect the food items they delivered on Wednesday to help support the Catholic Charities’ mission.
“I think it’s a positive thing to help people and give back,” Lemoine said.
Across the county, Catholic Charities’ food box program drew long lines of people who needed extra help getting groceries for their families. Looking around the community, Adams said, it was clear how many more people were in need of food assistance this year.
“I think there’s a lot of kids and elderly that might already have food insecurity [and] it worsened for them,” Adams said.
While Catholic Charities gets the majority of its food in bulk from suppliers like Good Shepherd’s Food Bank and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the workers said that small donations add up.
During the pandemic especially, food hasn’t come as reliably, and the organization can always use extra help filling the food boxes it sends to pantries and distributes at senior care facilities.
“Food is ebb and flow, we either have lots or not enough,” Catholic Charities employee Matt Russell said.
CARIBOU, Maine — Oct. 13, 2021 — Officer Gerard Lemoine (left) and Laura Adams of the Caribou Police Department unload nonperishable goods onto a pushcart to donate to Catholic Charities. (Hannah Catlin | Aroostook Republican)
CARIBOU, Maine — Oct. 13, 2021 — A Caribou Police Department cruiser backs into the Catholic Charities warehouse in Caribou to donate nonperishable goods. (Hannah Catlin | Aroostook Republican)
