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Every Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Laura and her team of about five adults and two-four teenagers volunteer to prepare and distribute food. Each person receives two bags of nonperishable items, such as cereal, crackers, peanut butter and jelly, two cans of vegetables, fruits, and meats, among other foods. Depending on what\u2019s available from partner organizations like local farmers markets and other pantries, they also distribute fresh potatoes, carrots, chicken nuggets, bread, and French toast strips.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The parish still has a small pantry of nonperishables located outside the church for off-hour guests. This is stocked with beanie weenies, Vienna sausages, premade peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, shelf-stable milk, fruit cups, and drinks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe pantry is open on Wednesdays, but of course, people get hungry all week long,\u201d Laura noted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Winchester\u2019s community emphasises collaboration rather than competition, so local churches and groups work together to serve whole communities through charitable efforts and care. Lowndes said she partners regularly with the West Side Church of the Nazarene in Tullahoma and the Community Action Committee associated with St. Mark & St. Paul in Sewanee. The Sewanee group works with the university dining hall to package leftover food into frozen meals, which Laura picks up weekly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Lowndes said the partnership works both ways, so when Trinity receives an abundance, they share as well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cFor example, tomorrow I\u2019m taking them chocolate cakes and salad mixings because we got a dozen chocolate cakes and several cases of salads donated,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s great to be able to share.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Last year, Trinity started something the church had been wanting to do for a decade \u2014 a community garden. On a small lot across the street from the church, volunteers built raised beds with help from a group called Growing Roots, which also provided topsoil and mulch. Another organization, Scoopin\u2019 Roots, donated plants at the start of the growing season and seeds for winter crops in the fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n One local dentist, Dr. Wall, has his office building right next to the church\u2019s garden lot, and he donates the use of his water for the garden. Neighbors stop by to help tend the beds and harvest vegetables for themselves and for the pantry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Among Lowndes\u2019 regular volunteers are four homeschooled sisters whose family moved to Winchester last year. Their mother wanted them involved in service work, so it started with the two oldest girls and grew to include all four. The week before Thanksgiving, when the pantry distributed full holiday meals in addition to regular food, all four girls showed up to help. What strikes Lowndes most about the work isn\u2019t the logistics of food distribution but the relationships that have developed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cPeople don\u2019t just come in and grab their food and go back out again,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of them like to stay and talk.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Even some of the visitors will stop to help prepare bags for next week\u2019s distribution. Others join the volunteers working in the garden, stopping to chat and lend a hand.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI think it\u2019s been good to put names with faces and let people know that we could all get in the situation where we may need something, and that there\u2019s nothing wrong with asking when you need some help,\u201d Lowndes said. \u201cWe\u2019re glad to help, but we\u2019re also glad to recognize them as people and visit with them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lowndes says the ministry\u2019s core is recognizing shared humanity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThey are people, and if you fall on hard times, or even make some bad choices, because that is certainly part of it sometimes, you still need to be cared for,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThroughout Jesus\u2019 ministry, food is usually there at the heart of it. He\u2019s eating with the people, he\u2019s preparing fish for the disciples, and the breaking of the bread \u2014 all of this is important. And when we open ourselves to share our tables, it\u2019s like you\u2019re sharing a part of yourself, your own vulnerability.\u201d GN<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Trinity Episcopal Church Food Pantry is open every Wednesday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Those interested in volunteering, particularly for summer garden projects, can visit the church during pantry hours, check Trinity\u2019s Facebook page, or contact the church directly.<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" LAURA LOWNDES, director of Trinity Episcopal Church\u2019s food pantry, did not expect Franklin County to be her forever home when she moved to Winchester in 1960. Still, after 65 years, she\u2019s done it all \u2014 raised a family, built a community, and established a food pantry that feeds dozens of families every week. Lowndes found […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":38,"featured_media":24934,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-24931","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/goodnewsmags.com\/franklin-county\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2026\/03\/4-1024x683.jpg\")
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