De Pere Christian Outreach unveils community fridge

DE PERE – De Pere Christian Outreach (DPCO) recently unveiled a new community fridge and shared shelf, which will work in tandem with its food pantry to provide consistent access to food for community members in need.

The fridge is located just outside of De Pere Christian Outreach’s food pantry at 1827 Chicago St., De Pere, but unlike the pantry, the fridge and shelf are available 24/7, as well as open on every day of the year.

The shelf and fridge are also available to anyone in the area, without requirements on residency or income level. In order to use the food pantry, families and individuals must have demonstrated financial need as certified by The Emergency Family Assistance Program (TEFAP).

“Our food pantry is open to low-income 54115 (De Pere) community members,” said Amy Murphy, executive director at DPCO. “But this, anybody can access. Our food pantry is open 10 a.m. to noon Monday-Friday. However, the fridge and shelf will be open 24/7.”

Donating food and making a positive impact on the community will also be made easier by this effort. DPCO provides a list of acceptable items both on their website and on printed sheets outside of the shelf and fridge area.

Some of these items include fresh fruits and vegetables, pasteurized milk, cooked eggs, yogurts and cheeses, frozen meals and prepared meals labeled with ingredients and dates.
“If anybody wants to donate, they just look at our guidelines outside the fridge and community shelf and put things in,” Murphy said.

In order to manage supply and ensure all families get something to eat, many food pantries have regulations on how often community members can come in, Murphy said, meaning that the new fridge will address an important gap in the need for food.

“In De Pere, we have two food pantries. There’s us on the east side, and there’s also St. Marks food pantry on the west side,” Murphy said. “We do biweekly distributions, and I think [St. Marks] does monthly distributions. All pantries have different rules and regulations, so this is designed to help fill in that gap.”

De Pere Christian Outreach is a nonprofit that was founded in 1990 by eight area churches with the mission of helping community members in need.

Since then, it has expanded its operations to include a food pantry, a thrift store and a Christmas store, which served over 199 families in 2024, according to DPCO’s website.

The Christmas store provides items to low income or at risk families who are referred by a school social worker, and DPCO accepts volunteers to help with this event, as well as their other operations.

“Our mission is to care for the community,” said Murphy. “We would love to have people help us in that endeavor.”

To learn more about DPCO, find them on Facebook at “De Pere Christian Outreach Thrift Store” or visit their website, deperechristianoutreach.org/