Angel Food Ministries

If it’s your job to feed a family, you’re probably always looking for ways to save.

How about a well-balanced, name-brand selection of food for a family of four—for about $30 a week?  Sound good; I know it does to me.

It’s a ministry, but it’s not free—it saves you money, but you don’t have to be in a certain income group to take part.

Some of the food is frozen. There’s variety, there’s milk, and name-brand food like you see at your grocery store. The name on the box is the name of the ministry, Angel Food Ministries, a food ministry with a servant’s heart.

More than 150 families will pick up food one recent day at North Highlands Baptist Church in Hueytown. This isn’t your normal food bank. You don’t have to have a story; you don’t even have to be low-income. Everyone pays for their food and the good news is that the more who participates, the better.

Gina Pennington is a volunteer, every here is. No salaries, no bosses. 

“A lot of people think they have to have a story or they have to be in need, but you don’t have to be in need to purchase food from this program,” Pennington of Angel Food Ministries said. ”In fact, the more people who purchase food from this program, the more people we are able to help, because they buy food in bulk and we’re able to get better deals on food the more we buy.“

Pennington learned about Angel Food Ministries when she needed it most.

“I got laid off last year a week before Christmas,” Pennington said, “and in January I found out and started using Angel Food. And I realized that there were no host sites in Hueytown, and I just knew that this was a huge need that we needed to bring to our city and to our church.“

People order food online by going to angelfoodministries.com.  You select the food you want from the menu at the Web site.  There are 40 pick-up points in the Birmingham area, like this one at North Highlands Baptist Church. Once a month, you pick up your food on the designated day at the distribution point nearest you.

“All the food is the same quality stuff you get at a grocery store. It’s excellent food, it’s excellent quality,“ Pennington said. “Usually, we can buy enough food to feed our family of four between $100 and $125 per month.“

Pennington told me that it’s important that this is seen for what it is: a cooperative effort, folks pooling their grocery money together to buy more.  They get some cash donations and buy food for others who can’t, but it’s not a handout program. Everyone benefits.

“And, it’s really a blessing to be able to give back to people, to be able to serve people and not to make them feel like they’re just a number,“ Pennington said.

One more note: Angel Food Ministries is offering a special Thanksgiving food package for $36 that feeds six to 10 people.