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From Paper Towels to Family Meals, Backus Boxes Go the Extra Mile

February 24, 2022

Every Thursday morning at 9 sharp, William Gerjes loads between 60 and 100 flattened cardboard boxes into his car and drives them one minute down Washington Street from Backus Hospital to Lee Memorial United Methodist Church.

Volunteers at the Community Outreach Center, located within the church, bring those boxes back to life and pack them with groceries for families who visit the Food Friday program the following day. The weekly donation of the boxes has been a huge help to the Center, said coordinator Brenda Keefe. In the current supply chain/inflation world in which we live, the center was paying $1.32 for each box. That was adding up to a steep annual expense of around $7,000.

Hartford HealthCare’s Director of Community Health Joseph Zuzel knew of the strain the cost of the boxes was putting on the center, which relies on food donations from the United Way of Southeastern Connecticut, Hillandale Egg Farm, Poppy & Rye Bakery, Brush Hill Farms and local gardeners and farmers. Monetary donations are used to supplement with fresh produce and pantry staples as needed.

So he and Gerjes, who is Regional Director of Environmental Services at Backus, came up with the idea of donating some of the many cardboard boxes full of supplies that flow into the hospital every day. It turned out the paper towel box was the perfect size for the food pantry. So Gerjes collects those boxes, disinfects them, flattens them and then brings them down the street once a week.

“It’s the highlight of my day,” he said. “They always have coffee for me. We chat. It’s a social time. They are such nice people, all volunteers, and it makes me feel good to be able to help.”

Keefe said the pantry averages 80 to 100 families a week to pick up food, but during the pandemic the need has risen, and sometimes they feed as many as 135 families.