Midland Community Market is more than a food bank

MIDLAND — It may be 90 degrees with stifling humidity, but by 5 p.m. on June 8, a line has already formed outside the doors of St. Blaise Church in Midland. But it seems the early birds were anticipated. Folding metal chairs have been placed in a row and a few volunteers stand nearby offering refreshments.  

When the doors to Midland Community Market open at 5:30, the early birds’ patience has paid off. It’s a free choice market, so they’ll get first dibs. But thanks to generous donations from Beaver County residents, there’s more than enough to go around.

Midland Community Market opened on April 13, the product of a three-way partnership between The Center, Steel City Table and St. Blaise. But it has roots in an earlier charity, a food bank at The Center, founded by Jen Miller to meet the urgent need for a grocery store.

Midland is a USDA-designated food desert, as it has not been home to a grocery store in at least 25 years. Public transportation is not readily available in Midland, and according to Miller, only 20% of the clients who visit the market own cars, which means making a shopping trip is extremely difficult for most Midland residents.

Miller and her husband heard the plea for a grocery store and took action in 2012, when they began the Center’s food bank.

“Jen and her husband Cory have made such a huge investment here in Midland over a long period of time,” said Dale Roddy of The Table Church. “The center of their heart is this community.” He testified to their desire to meet the needs of Midland residents, particularly through the food bank.

Miller hoped to offer produce, meat and dairy in addition to nonperishable items. But fresh food couldn't be stored without a refrigeration system, something the Center didn't have the space or funds to afford. Miller realized The Center couldn’t solve this problem on its own, so she began praying for partner organizations.

Last October, those prayers were answered.

The Table Church began serving alongside The Center, after a mutual friend introduced Miller and Roddy, along with Roddy’s wife Tawney. The Table had begun its own initiative, Steel City Table, serving hot meals for free in the South Side of Pittsburgh. They wanted to join The Center’s mission and expand the food bank into a free choice market.

The Center and Steel City Table collaborated to create a model proposal for the market. The model emphasized “client choice and dignity” by allowing clients to shop according to their own needs, “offering spiritual and emotional support” through prayers and fellowship, and “enhancing food availability,” providing “household staples and fresh food.”

Before long, St. Blaise reached out, offering to host the market. The church is large enough to house a refrigeration system, which was later provided through funding from Sewickley Presbyterian Church.

The next step was gathering donations. According to Miller, monetary donations are the most beneficial, because food donations that are perishable often won’t last until the next market day. The market received funding and food from Christians United (of First Presbyterian Church), the Snee-Reinhardt Foundation, Midland Elementary School, Midland Middle School, and Dutch Ridge Elementary School, as well as numerous other churches and scout troops.  

Miller and Roddy said an average of 70 families attended the first two market days in April and May. Roddy estimated that around 200 individuals attended.

No one is turned away at the door, a fact that one of the attendees, Joanna Work, appreciated. At some food banks, individuals must register and can be refused, she said, but at the Midland Community Market, “they accept everybody.” 

After stepping inside, each client is greeted by volunteers at the welcome table and signs in, so the organizers of the market can keep track of how many people visit. Clients are given numbers and told to wait until their number is called. Once it is, they are free to peruse the shelves of the market and take anything they need. 

Shelves of food and refrigerators line the perimeter of the room, and round tables fill the center. People fill the seats while they wait or after finishing their shopping to chat with neighbors. A volunteer welcomes kids to a table full of craft supplies and coloring books.

Another resource offered at the market is the Margaret A. Dawson Paper Bank Ministry. Tables along one wall are stocked with goods like toilet paper and paper towels, along with other household items like laundry detergent and soap. The items have been donated by members of First Baptist Church, originally located in Midland, now in Beaver.

Merita Zarack, granddaughter of Margaret Dawson, spoke about the ministry’s origins. 

Twelve years ago, Dawson felt a call to meet the needs of Midland residents for paper goods. She began the paper bank with a vision to “love on [people] and give ‘em what they need,” Zarack said.

Both the market and the paper bank address some of the daily needs of the Midland community while also encouraging everyone they serve. Shoppers leave with their baskets full of fresh groceries and their cups filled by the volunteers and neighbors who pour into them there.