The Franklin Food Pantry and the Weymouth Food Pantry participated in a friendly "SOUPer Bowl" competition, collecting nearly 5,000 cans of soup to help fight food insecurity in their communities. From January 9 to February 9, 2025, residents, local businesses, and even state senators rallied behind their local pantries, resulting in a combined total of 4,967 cans of soup. The final tally was Franklin 2,586 cans, Weymouth 2,381 cans.
“The SOUPer Bowl's success exceeded our expectations, and we are incredibly grateful to everyone in Franklin and Weymouth who came together to support their local pantry. Thanks to their generosity, we collected nearly 5,000 cans of soup but also raised awareness and brought communities together to take action against hunger," said Tina Powderly, Executive Director of the Franklin Food Pantry. "The winter months can be especially tough for donations, and this fun, football-themed competition filled shelves at our pantries and sparked important conversations about individuals and families experiencing food insecurity in our communities."
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| Franklin resident Wesley Hallion (age 6) |
The Greater Boston Food Bank reports that nearly 2 million adults in Massachusetts are food insecure, and 1 in 3 households with children in the state experienced child-level food insecurity in 2023. This means a child went hungry, skipped a meal, or didn't eat for an entire day due to lack of resources.
“The way our communities rallied was so heartening,” said Pam Denholm, Executive Director of the Weymouth Food Pantry. “Weymouth may have been ‘edged out’ of a win, but we are better positioned to support neighbors coming to us for help as winter endures and that still feels like winning to us.”
While the SOUPer Bowl competition has concluded, the fight against food insecurity continues.
Individuals and groups can still make a difference by:
- Donating food
- Donating funds
- Organizing a food drive
- Volunteering at a local food pantry
If you or someone you know is experiencing food insecurity, local food pantries are available to help.
- For assistance in Franklin, please visit www.franklinfoodpantry.org.
- For Weymouth residents, visit www.weymouthfoodpantry.org.
- You can also find additional resources through the Greater Boston Food Bank’s Partner Agency Locator at www.gbfb.org/need-food.
About the Franklin Food Pantry, Inc.The Franklin Food Pantry, Inc. offers supplemental food assistance, household necessities, and resource referrals to more than 1,800 individuals per year. The Pantry relies on donations and grants to purchase items and pay for daily operations, and partnerships with The Greater Boston Food Bank, Spoonfuls, and local grocery stores to achieve greater buying power and lower costs. Programs include In-person Shopping, Curbside Pick-up, Emergency Food Bags, Mobile Pantries, Home Delivery, Kids’ Snack Bags, Weekend Backpacks, Holiday Meals, and the SNAP match at Franklin Farmers Market.
The Pantry is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization in good standing in Massachusetts, recognized by Charity Navigator as a Four-Star Charity, and awarded GuideStar’s Platinum Transparency ranking. The Pantry is located at 341 W Central St. in Franklin, MA on Route 140. Please visit www.franklinfoodpantry.org for more information.
About the Weymouth Food PantryThe Weymouth Food Pantry is an independent 501(c)(3) charity providing free groceries to over 4,000 neighbors in Weymouth at any given time. The Weymouth Food Pantry serves between 100 and 250 families per service day, 600 and 800 families each month, and distributes about 840,000 pounds of food per year. The Weymouth Food Pantry offers food assistance and education through a variety of food access, food equity, and health focused programs, including pop-up pantries, grocery delivery to homebound elders and people with disabilities, a dollar-match at the farmers’ market, weekend food bags for students in school, an open access community garden, and “made with love” meals freshly prepared and frozen for easy reheating by neighbors for whom meal prep is a barrier to food security.
The Weymouth Food Pantry was founded in 1987 by a small group of concerned citizens. Its executive office is located at 40E Reservoir Park Drive, Rockland, MA02370. For more information, please visit www.weymouthfoodpantry.org, emailinfo@weymouthfoodpantry.org, or call 781-331-7682.
.jpg "In this SOUPer Bowl, everyone wins")