Weather turned out to be the Grinch, resulting in the cancelation of a food giveaway at Lockport Township High School that had been planned for Sunday.
But the holiday spirit embodied in ShareFest Will County will endure, organizers said, as the organization still will provide sustenance to those who sign up, and Lockport Township School District 205 plans to reschedule the ShareFest event, likely in April.
ShareFest Will County had been scheduled for Dec. 14 in the East Campus parking lot. But amid predictions of dangerously low temperatures, organizers decided to pull the plug on the food distribution event.
“With the temperatures and wind chills being in the negative numbers, we couldn’t risk the safety of the volunteers and of course all the people coming through,” said Gary Cheney, executive director and founder of ShareFest. “We usually get there at 7 a.m., and to unload all that takes hours and to set up. Our staff just wouldn’t be able to be out there that long.
He said the weather likely would affect those waiting in their cars as well.
“Dealing with that cold weather is unbearable,” he said.
Registration for the event was all but filled by the time the news arrived about the impending bad weather. So Cheney, Lockport Township Superintendent Robert McBride Jr. and other organizers made the hard decision.
The district has been a part of the event for five years as a way to show goodwill to the community, as well as help students gain some of their 40 hours of community service, he said.
“I just think we’re a large public high school district and we’re publicly funded, so we should be of service to the public,” McBride said. “One of the most vital and essential things is food. … Every year we have to acknowledge, and especially at holiday time, that there’s food scarcity. If people are in need, we say, ‘Come on down.’”
That’s the sentiment that got ShareFest started, first as an informal community venture and then in 2007 under its current name. The nonprofit has a 17,000-foot warehouse in New Lenox with a resource center, free grocery store and warehouse space. It’s often filled with volunteers from high schools, corporations or other nonprofits, along with two full-time and six part-time employees, and Cheney, the founder and executive director.
ShareFest also helps point the way to other providers, such as social service agencies, employers and mental health organizations.
The free grocery store is by appointment, at ShareFestWillCounty.org. Those who register get a full grocery cart full of the food of their choice, including meat, dairy and dry goods. There’s also clothes, household items and a mini-library.
They service 10,000 to 12,000 people monthly in 41 different zip codes in Will County. Hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Tuesday night until 6 p.m.
Food donations come from grocery stores, food banks, food drives by other organizations, supplemented by items that ShareFest purchases.
Cheney said it all started as a “dream” or “vision” but was brewing in the community in volunteer form for a long time.
“There are so many people in need,” said Cheney.
Cheney said he and the township were disappointed by the event’s cancelation, especially for the many people in need who were counting on it.
“Obviously it’s very disappointing when we have to cancel,” he said. “This is the first time we’ve ever had to cancel the drive-through event.”
It’s a personal mission for Cheney, who owns several insurance brokerage agencies, which he said provided him the income to “go out and do my passion.”
He said his faith drives the mission.
“My first profession is to serve the Lord in what he wants me to do,” he said.
Janice Neumann is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.
