Spirit of Giving: Volunteer gives, gets at Lansing Food Pantry

November 15, 2012 (CHICAGO) "We were serving about 45 families every time we were open. In that last five years that number has doubled," Adams said. Many of the patrons say they never expected they'd have to depend on a food pantry. "We come when we need it, and they're here for us. So we really appreciate this place," Bernell Anderson, former truck driver, said. Lance Lape is a former police officer who has been out of work for the past two years. "For years, we used to donate to the food pantry. I don't think I saw a time when I was thinking that hey, I'm going to be going there," Lape said. Cataracts forced Lynn Potter to stop working his part-time job as a crossing guard. "No one wants to admit you can go from a successful career to a retirement and then be at a point where you have to rely on someone else, but it does happen," Potter said. A motorcycle accident sidelined this truck driver. "If it wasn't for the food that I get here, I'd be going hungry," Richard Fialkowski, former truck driver, said. For Adams, the food pantry is as important to her is as it is to the people it serves. "You get so much more back from volunteering than you could ever give," Adams said. ABC7 Chicago teamed up with Dominick's in the Spirit of Giving Food Drive, which helps fill pantries like Lansing, which gets groceries from the Greater Chicago Food Depository and the Northern Illinois Food Bank. Donate non-perishable food items at any Dominick's store or make a cash donation by clicking here.