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Food Drive
Front row, left to right: Troop 21 Boy Scouts Tyler J. Lajoie of Woodstock, Richard L. Labonte of Pomfret and Angelo G. DeSalvio of Putnam, Scoutmaster and Grand Knight Peter A. Lombardo, 49, of Putnam. Back row: Cargill Council 64, K of C, member Matthew C. Wester, Project Northeast Dir. Fr. Richard L. Archambault, Troop 21 Senior Patrol Leader Sawyer M. Thull, and Cargill Council Trustee and Troop 21 Committee Member Frank Bichard, all of Putnam, collected over $300 and about 32 cubic feet of food for Project Northeast. Photo courtesy of John D. Ryan.
PUTNAM — Putnam’s Boy Scout Troop 21 and Knights of Columbus Cargill Council 64 spent St. Patrick’s Day morning outside WINY studios collecting food and money for Project Northeast. The four hour’s work netted about 32 cubic feet of food and over $300 in cash for the private, regional social service agency for the needy.
“I was part of a family of nine kids, growing up in N. Grosvenordale,” said Fr. Richard L. Archambault, 82, Project Northeast’s director. “We had great parents; they taught us to share and to care for people who were less fortunate than we were.”
That call to help the less fortunate eventually led the lifelong Roman Catholic priest to start Project Northeast in 1978. “I was a pastor of a parish in Mystic at the time,” he said. “They were great people there, but I had always been inspired to work for the poor.”
A three-month sabbatical, followed by discussions with then-Bishop of Norwich Daniel P. Reilly, led Archambault to start the non-profit, non-denominational ministry in August of that year. Today, he said Project Northeast serves about 900 families and spends about $36,000 a year, providing temporary help with food, utilities and other basic necessities for people throughout the ten towns from Plainfield to the Massachusetts border. Although it’s part of the Norwich Diocese, it’s supported almost entirely by donations.
“I’m happy as a priest,” Archambault said. “I meet real people every day and do what God put me here to do.”
However, he said running the social service agency has many challenges, particularly during this recession. He said the winter had left the pantry nearly empty, while they’ve had to cut back, for the moment anyway, on the some of the financial help they can give.
“We’re not able to help people with fuel oil right now,” Archambault said. “The more we get in donations, the more we can do for people.”
So the priest was looking forward to last Saturday, when, with help from WINY, members of Boy Scout Troop 21 and K of C Council 64 got together for four hours in the radio station’s parking lot to take donations of money and non-perishable food items.
The two organizations come together in the person of Peter A. Lombardo, 49, of Putnam, who is both Troop 21’s Scoutmaster and Council 64’s Grand Knight.
“The Knights of Columbus worldwide have a ‘Hunger Knows No Season’ campaign that Cargill Council has been part of since we started the council’s annual collection for Project Northeast in (March of) 2009,” he said. “Our Scouts are here because we do this as a community service. It’s what we do.”
Troop 21 Senior Patrol Leader Sawyer M. Thull, 16, of Putnam, is the senior Scout in charge of Troop 21, under adult supervision. “It’s hard; not everybody can afford things right now,” he said. “We’re helping people in our community.”
Everything was moved to the Project Northeast pantry and headquarters, in a small basement room at St. Mary Church of the Visitation.
“We see lots of people who are out of work or sick,” said Project Northeast Assistant Dir. Sr. Eleanor Baldoni, a member of the Secular Branch of the Daughters of the Holy Spirit. “Since the recession, we’ve seen many professional people who used to have good jobs but now have lost their houses and are in trouble. I call them ‘the middle class poor.’”
Although the drive is over and the pantry has food for the moment, Project Northeast still needs help. Checks may be mailed to: 81 Church St., Putnam, CT 06260.
K of C member Matthew C. Wester, 26, of Putnam, summed up Saturday’s effort when he said: “We’re in Lent and part of Lent is getting out and doing something extra. We wanted to do that extra for our neighbors who need help.”