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About UsThe Food Pantry of North Branford, Inc. provides free supplemental groceries to "those in need". Registration is required. Hours of operation: Wed. 4-7:00 PM, Fri. 10:00 AM-1 PM. Our Phone Number is 203-208-2581. Registered customers may come once weekly during these hours. The pantry is not wheelchair accessible, however, arrangements can be made for an individual to have someone shop for them. Delivery is not available.
The Food Pantry is located in the Basement of St. Andrews Episcopal Church, (rear entrance) 1382 Middletown Avenue (Route 17), Northford, CT. |
Who We Are |
We opened on June 6, 2015 to provide supplemental groceries for those in need. There are no income requirements. We are a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation registered with the state of Connecticut and the IRS. We are a member of the Connecticut Food Bank which allows us to obtain food at a significantly reduced price or for free.
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Our History
Lynn Riordan, Founder of The Food Pantry of North Branford, Inc.
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From a WTNH interview, September 22, 2014
A North Branford mom is on a mission in the name of her late son Matt, to build a food pantry in her town to give back in his name and feed the hungry. Lynn Riordan formed the non-profit Matt’s Mission after her 18-year-old died in a car crash in 2009. He was going too fast and lost control. Riordan talks to other parents about keeping their kids safe on the road, and along with that she is pushing to build a place to end hunger in her town. “It’s important for me to prevent this from happening to other people’s families. I mean it was my first nightmare come true and I just don’t want to see it happen to anyone else if possible,” said Riordan. Matt’s Mission is expanding and Riordan is expanding it into a food pantry in North Branford. “Over the last five years, we’ve helped numerous people with Matt’s Mission, I think to date we’ve given back about $204,000 back into our North Branford community. And I do this because the love I received after Matthew died was just overwhelming. I mean you expect your family to love you and care for you and your friends, but from the superintendent on down, they wrapped their arms around me and they held me up in my worst time. An so I want to pay that forward and I want to acknowledge people who are struggling and one thing I’ve learned with Matt’s Mission is that people are hungry. People are hungry, we give out lots of coupons for Stop and Shop and Big Y, just in my town alone,” said Riordan. She continued, “there’s 16,000 people in our town of North Branford approximately. A lot of people are hungry. Seniors on fixed income, people who are sick, disabled, I get stories every single day. Let’s see, a man whose the money winner for his family gets cancer, he can’t work. He needs surgery and chemo therapy and radiation treatment. He has four children and he’s got no money to feed them. So I get wind of this and I show up at their door and I bring them, I actually had a friend do it, bring coupons for Stop and Shop.” Riordan says those coupons help, but a bricks and mortar food pantry is the way to go to really feed her town and she is hoping she will get the help she needs to make it a reality. |
Look What We Did In Just ONE Year!
That is 31.6 tons of food!
That is 31.6 tons of food!
