Lake Forester, December 30, 2010

White envelope with $100 bills: Township welcomes slew of donations

By LINDA BLASER

The hand-delivered white envelope carried a simple hand-written note on the outside: "Food Pantry or General Assistance Donation."

When she opened it, Shields Township Supervisor Gale Strenger Wayne found a typewritten letter signed "Anonymous" and a dozen $100 bills.

"I have goose bumps," Strenger Wayne said Monday afternoon.

Also in the mail on Monday, the township's Phoenix Rising Foundation received a $2,000 check from the Chicago Community Trust with the Baird & Warner Good Will Network.

"We're so gratified because the purchasing power of the cash is so significant," Strenger Wayne said.

Monday's combined $3,200 in donations comes on top of $5,300 in cash donations received in November as well as food donations from various Scout groups and turkey donations in December, including 65 from Sen. Susan Garrett's office, nine from Cornfield's Inc. and three from a local resident.

Strenger Wayne said cash donations are up "because people are becoming aware of what we're doing here."
Meetings on TV

The anonymous donor of the 12 $100 bills indicated in his letter that he has been watching the Shields Township Board meetings on cable TV and wanted to help those who need food.

The Board and Strenger Wayne have gone head to head over the food pantry in the Shields Township office in Knollwood, with the trustees indicating that while they support the food pantry they wonder if those in need would be better served by a pantry located in North Chicago or Waukegan.

"We all see the benefit of a food pantry," Trustee Laura Carney of Lake Bluff said at the Township general meeting on Dec. 16.

Carney said she would like to take the residency requirement instituted last December one step further.

"I'd like us to keep a tab of who's coming in and where they're from so over time we can see if the majority are close to the food pantry," she said.

The Board is trying to assess if more township residents who need food would have easier access to a pantry located in the community where the need is greatest. While Township officials said that people have come from all over the township for food, including the more wealthy communities of Lake Forest and Lake Bluff, the bulk seem to be from North Chicago.

"The need right now is in North Chicago," said Trustee Mary Woodson of North Chicago. "My concern is having (the food pantry) where the people need it most. Right now we know times are very hard. I think we should really look at it."

Woodson also suggested the Township work in partnership with North Chicago churches that run local food pantries.

Strenger Wayne suggested retaining the pantry in Knollwood and adding a second in North Chicago or perhaps a mobile food pantry to reach all areas in need.

Trustee Lynne Baehr of Lake Forest volunteered to tabulate where recipients are from and to sign a confidentiality agreement to ensure food recipients' privacy.

The Board indicated it will monitor food pantry usage over the next 12 months before making a decision.