The Free Press, Mankato, MN

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    ECHO

September 14, 2009

Teachers give big to food shelf

Annual drive sets record

By Tanner Kent

MANKATO — Bob Ihrig is thankful he drives a minivan.

The longtime Mankato teacher is — quite literally — the driving force behind an annual donation to the ECHO Food Shelf by teachers in Mankato Area Public Schools.

Since 2005, Ihrig has coordinated a food-and-donation drive during the school district’s back-to-school workshop. Past years have netted hundreds of dollars and hundreds of pounds of food for the Mankato-based food shelf that provides free groceries to less fortunate families.

But this year’s donation was so large that Ihrig had to make some slight modifications to his minivan.

“We had to take the seats out and stack boxes on top of boxes,” Ihrig said. “It took three of us to get it all in and four of us to unload it all.”

All tallied, Mankato teachers donated $1,168 and 784 pounds of food this year — records in both categories. The previous records came from 2006, when teachers donated $1,135, and 2007 when teachers gave 540 pounds of food.

To date, teachers have donated about $4,200 and 2,600 pounds.

“I’m just really impressed,” Ihrig said. “It’s a neat way to start the school year.”

Ihrig collected donations during the district’s back-to-school workshop on Sept. 3. He said the idea was prompted by an article in The Free Press from back in 2005 in which ECHO officials announced a severe lack of food.

Ihrig said he remembers the picture that accompanied the article showed bare shelves running the length of ECHO’s storehouse, which is located just south of Madison Avenue on Second Street.

“The idea just hit me to do something,” Ihrig said.

ECHO manager Deisy De Leon said July and August have been the busiest months at the food shelf in years. In July, ECHO served 1,148 clients; in August, the tally was 985.

With so much demand, De Leon said the teachers’ donations were most welcome.

“It gives us variety,” she said. “During the summer, we tend to run low.”

De Leon said ECHO has a shortage right now of personal hygiene products. For information on how to donate or receive services, call 507-345-7508 or visit www.echofoodshelf.org.

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