New Becker County Food Pantry opens to clients for the first time on Terry Street in Detroit Lakes

Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – The Becker County Food Pantry opened their new building for distribution to their first clients on Tuesday afternoon.

The new food pantry building, located on Terry Street, north of Highway 34 on Richwood Road, is about twice the size of their old building and Brad Carlson, executive director of the Becker County Food Pantry, said the move wouldn’t have been possible without the tremendous community support they’ve received over the last couple weeks, which included the brutish lifting strength of the Detroit Lakes football team.

The Becker County Food Pantry sits at its new location on Terry Street in Detroit Lakes on Oct. 31, 2023. (Michael Achterling / KDLM)

“The Lion’s Club asked the football team to show up and they carried the heavy weights,” said Carlson. “We can’t believe the muscles that were on those guys, but we sure appreciated those muscles.”

Other community groups and businesses helping with the food pantry move included:

Mid-west Bank
Walmart
Absolute Ice
Becker County Sentence to Serve Program
Lakeshirts

Carlson also said he’s was touched by the outpouring of generosity during the food pantry’s fundraising efforts to pay for their new building and some of the donations made came from unsuspecting places.

Items sit on shelves. ready to be selected by clients, at the Becker County Food Pantry at their new facility on Terry Street in Detroit Lakes on Oct. 31, 2023. (Michael Achterling / KDLM)

“Before we really got started, I had a gentleman show up at the food shelf, and he said dad always gives each of us kids $100 for Christmas and he asked if they could just write out a check for $500 to the food bank,” he said.

Carlson said he told the kids and their father they were raising money for a new building and they agreed their donation would be perfect for their fundraising effort.

“And he showed up the next day with a check for $1,500,” said Carlson.

As far as the new computer systems and other operations at the new building, Carlson said, they’ll be getting all the kinks out over the next couple of weeks.

“We hope it goes well,” he said. “The next several days are going to be a learning curve because we’ve done it the same way for so long that it’s like the teacher at school getting a new book.”

The Becker County Food Pantry plans to conduct their regular drop-off and distribution times going forward. The new facility is open on Tuesday and Thursday from 12 p.m. to 3 p.m.

The food pantry will also be holding an open house to the public on Nov. 15, he said, which would be a good time for anyone who wants to come check out their new location to stop by.

The logo of the Becker County Food Pantry is displayed on at freezer at its new location on Terry Street in Detroit Lakes on Oct. 31, 2023. (Michael Achterling / KDLM)