Mar 29, 2020 3 min read

Bethel Park’s Emergency Food Drive is continuing with the addition of Operation Troop Appreciation now included as a drive recipient along with South Hills Interfaith Movement and Bethel-St. Clair Meals on Wheels.

Donations are being accepted from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. weekdays at the front entrance of the Bethel Park Community Center, 5151 Park Ave.

The updated list of needed items includes:

• Food – macaroni and cheese, pasta, sauce, rice (flavored, white and brown), canned vegetables, microwavable or canned soup, beans, cereal (all sizes), oatmeal (instant or regular), crackers, microwaveable or canned meals, peanut butter, jelly, canned or packaged fruit, apples, oranges, bananas, individual snacks, individual cereal bars, individual protein bars, individual bags of chips and pretzels, Pop Tarts, bread and buns, bottles of water and juice, boxes of juice and protein snacks.
• Cleaning supplies (disinfecting only) – cleaning wipes, multi-purpose cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner, and hand sanitizer.
• Monetary – checks should be made out to the agency donors wish to donate to and can be dropped off at the community center during food drive hours.

Operation Troop Appreciation will be using donations to put together “care boxes” for military personnel, veterans and first responders in need during the COVID-19 crisis.

“So far, our drive has exceeded our expectations and has helped SHIM and Meal on Wheels replenish their pantries,” Bethel Park municipal manager Laurence Christian said. The addition of Operation Troop Appreciation came after a conversation he had with Sherry Einhaus, community Projects and events coordinator, “who had a call from a veteran who was eating dog food.”

Meals on Wheels serves seniors or other individuals who are basically shut-ins and cannot cook or shop for adequate foods or make meals for themselves, according to Dorothy Vandruff, Bethel-St. Clair Meals on Wheels kitchen coordinator. SHIM provides food, clothing and services to people in need in Pittsburgh’s southern suburban neighborhoods.

“People have been incredibly generous,” Christian said. “The need has grown so much since we began with seniors who have been effectively shut in and now expanding to help residents left unemployed by the mandated business closure. COVID-19 is truly affecting everybody and we’re trying to help wherever we can.”

The municipality is using approved U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention protocols to handle donated items.

For more information on the organizations or to contact them, visit or call: South Hills Interfaith Movement, shimcares.org or 412-854-9120; Bethel-St. Clair Meals on Wheels, bethelparkmealsonwheels.com or 412-835-1039; and Operation Troop Appreciation, www.operationtroopappreciation.org or 412-653-1317.

The Bethel Park Community Center can be reached at 412-851-2910.