Founded in 2006 by Jean Woolsey, High Plains Helping Hands Inc. strives to provide ongoing assistance to families and individuals in need in the Falcon area. Woolsey began the pantry as a ministry of the Mountain Springs Church, but in April 2008, the pantry changed its name and became a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization.Woolsey stepped down as director of the pantry in November 2009 and handed the reins off to Rose Mizer, former administrator of HPHH.High Plains Helping Hands provides services to its patrons for as long as they need it. “Our goal is to serve our patrons with more than just food by providing them with educational services, spiritual nourishment, financial resources and a friend to talk to,” said volunteer and building facilitator Craig Swan, whose wife Lisa serves as the volunteer coordinator. Last year, the pantry served 498 different families in eight separate zip codes in the Falcon area, many who came for food every two weeks.With the holiday season rapidly approaching, HPHH is gearing up to provide seasonal items for its patrons such as Thanksgiving and Christmas meal bags, Christmas toys and hats, coats and gloves. In 2009, HPHH distributed food to 197 families for Thanksgiving and 204 families for Christmas. More than 300 children received toys during the Christmas holiday.Throughout the rest of the year, the pantry provides a variety of items: Easter baskets, school supplies, paper supplies like toilet paper and paper towels, cleaning supplies and personal hygiene items. Donations are accepted all year long and can be dropped off at the pantry any time during its operating hours. Other services such as sewing quilts, knitting or crocheting hats and scarves and cutting firewood are needed as well.HPHH relies on grants and donations to keep the facility running. Farmer’s State Bank awarded the pantry a $1,000 grant for new shelving. The pantry also relies on volunteers like Barbara Henning, who said she got involved with HPHH because her church had helped out the pantry during the holidays. “I thought I would like to make it more than a once-a-year type of thing. It’s a way for me to stay connected without having a job,” said Henning, who now volunteers about four hours every week.HPHH is currently located at 14755 East Highway 24 in the Falcon Storage facility; however, the pantry is in need of a new location by October 2011, when the lease expires. “We’re wanting to start a building campaign to raise money to be able to move,” Mizer said.”We are currently at a crossroads for our ministry,” Swan said. “In order to serve the community, we need to find a new location within a year, and we need more volunteers to help serve our patrons.”Operating hours for HPHH are Thursdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and the first and third Saturdays of the month from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The pantry is closed on holidays. Volunteer information is available at the pantry, or visit the Web site at www.highplainshelpinghands.com. Anyone who would like to contribute to the building campaign can write a check to the High Plains Helping Hands (put building campaign in the memo) and send it to PO Box 281, Peyton, CO, 80831.
