The Pike County Salvation Army’s food closet is not exactly bursting at the seams, but it is better able to meet the increasing demands through a donation from a food drive at Troy University.

“The food drive at Troy University resulted in 2,200 cans of food being donated to the Pike County Salvation Army,” said Kim May, local Salvation Army service center director. “We are so thankful for the donation because it will go a long way in meeting the needs of the people of Pike County. And, not only did the university donate such a large amount of non-perishable foods, they went through all of the cans to make sure they were not out of date. That was a big help to us.”

May said the requests for food are just as great during the summer months, probably because school is out and the children are home.

“We have requests for food every day, no matter what season of the year it is,” she said. “There are always people in need.”

May said the food pantry always needs meat and protein items such as peanut butter.

“We get very few canned meats and peanut butter,” she said. “We would like to include protein in any basket that we give out but aren’t always able to do so. Canned meats and peanut butter are more costly, so they are our greatest needs. We also need powdered milk and don’t get a lot of it.”

The Pike County Salvation Army recently received funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Emergency Food and Shelter Program and, although the funds were greatly appreciated, they are not enough to meet the needs of the Pike County Salvation Army Service Center, May said.

“We have applied for a Walmart grant to help fund general needs and, if we get this grant, it will be a boost to our general fund,” May said.

Hopes are that there will be applicants for the Salvation Army’s Camp Hidden Lake summer camp. The camp is for ages six through 14 and applications will be available at the Salvation Army Service Center in Troy by the end of the month.

“The camp is in Lexington, Miss. and is free to those who would like to attend,” May said. “We haven’t had any applicants the last couple of years but hope to have several this summer.”

May said the Salvation Army Service Center always welcomes donations of good used clothing, furniture and odds and ends.

“Those who have furniture but have no way to get it to the center are encouraged to call the service center and we’ll make arrangements for pickup,” she said.

Monetary donations are always needed and appreciated. Donations to the Pike County Salvation Army are used locally.

For more information about the Salvation Army or to make a donation, call 334-808-1069.