By Susan Bromley

Staff Writer

Brandon Twp.– When Vicky Berney’s husband broke his back and was out of work for months, with no income as they waited for a workman’s comp case to be settled, she wondered how she was going to feed their four children, as well as a nephew in their custody.

She went to the state for assistance and was turned away because of the assets they had accumulated when times were good and he was making more than $25 an hour as a plastic injection moldmaker. But they had bills to pay for that lifestyle and with the salary gone, no food to put on the table.

At the suggestion of a friend, she turned to her church, St. Anne, and found the help she desperately needed in the Ortonville Community Emergency Fund, which runs a food pantry.

“They were the ones that helped me,” recalls Berney gratefully. “That meant a lot because it was right after Christmas and we were really broke. They helped us with bills, food, stuff for the kids.”

Although Berney’s husband returned to work after about a year, they were still struggling to catch up when he shattered his heel in a ladder accident while he was trimming trees in their yard. He was in a wheelchair for six months and shortly after he recovered, he and Berney divorced and their home was foreclosed upon.

She turned to OCEF again, and the food pantry was, as it has been for many others, the one constant source of support in a time of upheaval and struggle.

That help is needed more than ever at the holidays, which are quickly approaching. OCEF, a non-profit organization that serves low-income families that reside within the Brandon School District boundaries, expects to assist more than 200 families put Thanksgiving dinner on the table this year. They need the help of the community to do so.

OCEF is seeking donations of items for the Thanksgiving distribution, including cake mix and frosting; Jell-O/pudding; peanut butter; gravy/broth; macaroni and cheese; candy or snacks; soup; cereal; evaporated milk; jelly; pasta/rice; muffin mix; canned corn; canned green beans; tuna; stuffing; pumpkin; cranberry sauce; pie crust; canned fruit; canned assorted vegetables; potatoes; toilet paper; and paper towels. Donations of $25 Bueche’s gift cards for clients to purchase meat and fresh items are also appreciated.

All donations should be made by Nov. 20 for the Thanksgiving distribution. A collection box is located at Bueche’s Food World, 400 N. Ortonville Road, or donations can be brought to the food donation basket in the gathering area at St. Anne Church, 825 S. Ortonville Road.

“This is such a unique community and we’d never be able to take care of all of these families without the caring, loving hearts that live in this community,” said Karyn Milligan, food pantry director. “We can never say thank you enough. We exist because of this community and the hearts that live here.”

Milligan is also seeking volunteers to help with not only the Thanksgiving food distribution, but with the Christmas distribution in December as well.

“They mean a lot to me,” said Berney, who lives with her daughter, three grandchildren and three dogs. “Everytime things start going right and I get back to where I can do it on my own, the car explodes or something ends up happening, I lose a job and have to find another job, or have surgery. I work at a plastics factory in Romeo and it’s still not enough to make ends meet…If it wasn’t for OCEF I would be at a loss, they have helped me and my family so much. Some people wouldn’t make it without them at all and I have been there at the bottom where I wouldn’t have made it.”

For more information on how to help OCEF and your neighbors in need by volunteering, call OCEF volunteer coordinator Karen Kubik at 248-627-3965, ext. 102 or email ocef@church of stanne.org.