Saint Katharine Drexel Food Pantry

Saint
Katharine Drexel Food Pantry is an outreach ministry of the parish
located at the Catholic Social Services building in Chester, PA. 
The parish is a 501(c)(3)
nonprofit. Every
Tuesday and Thursday we
welcome local
residents
who are in need regardless of religious affiliation or belief. We
never turn away anyone in need of food assistance.  

Our
food distribution of pantry staples, produce and perishable items
nourishes our neighborhood while our service and ability to provide
donated feminine products brings dignity and unites us in our common
humanity; embodying the dedication of Katharine Drexel’s life work
for justice among the poor and oppressed. Our
goal is keeping
a well stocked pantry to assist the neighborhood with
needed groceries. 

We
value the importance of funding a bilingual staff member which allows
us to also assist the local Hispanic community with deserved dignity.
Valoramos la importancia de financiar a un miembro del personal
bilingüe que nos permita también ayudar a la comunidad hispana
local con la dignidad merecida. 

The
team at St. Katharine Drexel Food Pantry is called to assist
local families
by providing groceries to over
3,000 individuals each quarter. However,
we sadly observe our
First
Quarter 2025
statistics saw
a decrease of 240 fewer individuals; primarily among Hispanic households. That is
heartbreaking to us!

878
HOUSEHOLDS visited the pantry in the First Quarter of
2025:

1,260
ADULTS | 1,364 CHILDREN | 450 SENIORS

Totaling 40,190
POUNDS of groceries distributed to 3,074 INDIVIDUALS 

Currently,
we permit families primarily in zip code 19013 - Chester,
PA. Plus families in neighboring zip codes of: 19015 – Upland & Brookhaven | 19061 - Marcus Hook and Linwood | 19022 – Eddystone. 

Every
visitor must sign in and show proof of local residency and self
declare they meet the Philabundance income threshold for
eligibility. 

Included among our
registered residents/families are homeless individuals, those
living in boarding houses and ex-offenders in half-way houses trying
to get back on track. Plus a number of seniors who are
raising their grandchildren, which allows us to provide for those
young children and teenagers.

As
reported by Data USA: 30.8% of the population for whom poverty status
is determined in Chester, PA (9.38k out of 30.4k people) live below
the poverty line, a number that is higher than the national average
of 12.4%. Which demonstrates the need is great and role of our food pantry essential!

It
is our purpose to provide the basic needs to help make people's lives
more livable while providing hope towards improving their
circumstances. 

We don't want our brothers and sisters
remaining in poverty or marginalized.  Our pantry works to
remove barriers toward self-sustainability and
self-improvement.  With food in the home and support from
the community; hope is gradually restored, and confidence
reignited. 

Some
days we have plenty to share, other days the shelves and
refrigerators are in need of restocking.  

God's
providence is very visible through the goodness and generosity
of parishes, groups, schools, markets, businesses, and individuals like
you.   Our dedicated volunteers, philanthropic
supporters, charitable donors and loyal contributors enable us to provide a living and active witness to the
local community we serve. Many Thanks for your generosity!