The old building above Route 30 at Shoulderblade once housed a church. From the road, it looks the same on the outside as it once did.

Located next to the Canoe Volunteer Fire Department, a stream of cars, vans and trucks begin to trickle in and stop, with people walking up the hill to the old building where an American flag greets them before they go in the door.

But there’s a big difference inside. Mountains of cardboard boxes filled with food and household items stack up towards the celing. And that constant stream of people - young, old and in between - come in to pick up food and other necessities to keep them going as the month winds down.

It’s a “Give-Out” day at the headquarters of Helping Hands Christian Resources (HHCR). It’s also the six-month anniversary of the organization’s center, which started there back last May. And last Friday, volunteers were getting ready to make sure those in need would be able to feed their families for Thanksgiving, and the rest of the Holiday season.

“Six months is a big thing for us. Hopefully by next month, or in January of next year, we’ll move this food pantry downstairs, and use this floor for used clothing and an outreach center, plus a few household items,” said HHCR’s President, Cathaleen Abner. “When we started in May, we had one give-out day for food. Now we have them on the third and fourth Fridays of each month, and on the fifth Friday of the month, when it falls on the calendar. Ultimately, it will be full-time.”

The change, and the volume of what they deal with has picked up by leaps and bounds since their opening during the warm springtime weather. Those boxes still contain items like bottled water, dried fruit, cereals, Great Northern beans, applesauce, baby formula, canned vegetables, dried beans and other necessities. But there’s more of them, and because of more boxes, the room is so packed, it’s nearly impossible to get through the aisles.

And there’s more people who have signed up for the food give-out, said Sandy Lovely, who serves as Client Manager for HHCR. “There were 30 families served when we opened up in May. Now, if everybody comes during their appointments, it would be 333 people.” The phones ring more often. And because of the increase in people participating, those using the service have to make appointments.

What started out as a food pantry has now expanded to other services, like a Homemakers’ Club. Karen Davis of the Breathitt County Extension Office comes there to give advice on how members can live better, eat better and improve the lives of their families. It’s made an impression on Ethel Pennington of Canoe. “This program’s opened my eyes up about what you can do in this world. Karen’s real nice, she made good food, and taught me things about the food groups I didn’t know.” Pennington sat on a couch, holding her son, who’s known as “Nathan”. “He’ll be five-months old next month, and if I took him to town for this, I’d have to find a babysitter. But here I can bring Nathan with me. And the staff really loves Nathan.”

In time, Abner hopes the building at Shoulderblade will be a one-stop source for lots of services, like helping people get their G.E.D. diploma. “We tried that before, but we didn’t have enough attendance. We’ll pursue that again, after we get through the Holidays.”

Where does the food come from? The main source is God’s Pantry in Lexington, who is backed by America’s Second Harvest, a nationwide food bank. They’re also getting help from TEFAP - The Emergency Food Assistance Program. And from donations from local people and businesses. But it doesn’t come cheap, and Abner noted to the Voice as a result, donations of time, resources and money are always in the forefront. “Our fundraising is full-time, year-round. We have to pay rent here, and we have to pay for upkeep on the vehicle we use. Things like gas, oil, maintenance, and insurance. That vehicle takes food to people who can’t get here.”

So Abner says bake sales, selling family portrait pictures, and other events dot the schedule at HHCR’s calendar. Along with some help from others. “We do a lot of fund-raising all the time. We half to. The bills go on. But businesses like the banks and funeral homes have also come to our aid. We just make a list of what our needs are, and how we can go about taking care of it.”

The headquarters for Helping Hands was originally to have been at the old Turner School earlier this year, but “there were some issues involved,” according to Abner. “I turned that place back in. But the Lord provides, and He opens doors, which led us to here. We want to do what we can, and to make a difference. We want to be a blessing.”

Thanks to their help and generosity, those who might not have enough to eat on Thanksgiving will have food. Thanks to more volunteers working now than six months ago, more people are being served. But those who serve will also have time for their own families when they sit down at the dinner table, Abner noted. “We all got together and decided that we don’t want to leave out the next Give-Out Day this Friday, but that we also want to have Thanksgiving with our loved ones, too.”

And so they will.

It’ll be a day off for Cathaleen and Sandy, plus volunteers like Amanda Brewer, Irene Little and Bea Gross. Plus the other volunteers who drive the trucks, pick up the food and work long hours without pay. But this Friday, they’ll be back on the job, making sure someone will have enough to eat. Abner put it this way, “They work harder during the holidays, so that others can have a holiday.”

And that others less fortunate can survive everyday.