Irving Park Community Food Pantry

10/13/2026

Join us and other organizations from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, October 16th at Our Lady of Mercy (4432 N. Troy) for a Senior Resource Fair sponsored by 33rd Ward Alderwoman Rossana Rodríguez’s Sage Brigade group that aids senior citizens in the ward. Come say hi, ask questions or learn about our programs.

10/13/2026

Rebecca Haneburg brought in one of the final harvests of the year from Three Brothers Garden last week, as the growing season winds down. As always, we immediately put out the produce for clients to shop right away.
The Garden is operated by Carlson Community Services in conjunction with the Irving Park Lutheran Church at their location at 3938 W Belle Plaine Ave. They harvest from 6 to 7 p.m. each Tuesday night. If you're interested in helping for one of the final times this year, contact Liz Drew at [email protected].
We appreciate all of the volunteers' efforts on behalf of our clients all season long, as they love having such fresh options each week!

10/12/2026

Nearly 11,500 pounds of food were delivered to our volunteers by the Greater Chicago Food Depository this morning, kicking off preparations for our two distributions in the next few days. We'll be open Tuesday night from 6 to 7 p.m. and Wednesday morning from 9 a.m. to noon for anyone in the 60641 or 60618 ZIP codes to shop our full array of food, toiletries and pet food. They also will be able to shop for winter hats, scarves and gloves for their family members in our program that continues all month.
Those outside of that area can receive a basic amount of food or use this link to find a closer pantry: https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org/find-food
*Please note:* We are offering an expanded indoor waiting area for clients to keep them away from inclement weather until they are called to shop.
If you would like to help us purchase all of the items needed, please make a donation at our website, www.irvingparkfoodpantry.org, via PayPal, Venmo, credit cards or Google Pay. You also can mail a check to Irving Park Food Pantry, 4256 N. Ridgeway Ave, Chicago IL 60618. Thank you for your support!

10/11/2026

Congratulations to Nitro, the new Mayor of Portage Park Farmer's Market! The recent election win resulted from participants purchasing votes with donations of canned goods to the Pantry. He sent his minion and owner Kari Dalia to bring in the results: 384 cans of food!
Helping out were Alex Hernandez and wife Julie’s dog, Sunny, who brought in more of the donation.
We appreciate all of the donations and look forward to Nitro’s rule, during which he’s promised to be Portage Park’s best friend and to always be available for pets and to give out the best nub wags ever.
We appreciate their enthusiastic support and look forward to working with them again on future events!

10/10/2026

The 5th grade Kindness Crew at St Viator Elementary school (https://www.facebook.com/stviatorchicago) hosted a winter hat, glove and scarf drive for Irving Park Community Food Pantry in October. The 5th grade collected over 600 items from St. Viator students and families for Pantry clients. The Pantry appreciates the long-standing partnership with St. Viator! Thank you for your generous spirit.

10/09/2026

Our team of volunteers, led by several board members, were well stocked and ready to help clients select hats, scarves and gloves for their family members from a range of donations we received before our first distribution on Wednesday.
In all, they gave out 363 pieces. The team included board member Marcy Sherrill, Andrea Guthman, board member and program coordinator Kate McClelland and board member Sara Yoest. Others also came by to pitch in later in the day. We appreciate all their work to help keep so many clients warm this winter!
You can make an online donation of items to ensure we have enough for the remaining four distributions this month at https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3020D4UJVJJZ6?ref_=wl_share.
Locally purchased donations can be taken to the Big Helpers store at 4184 N. Elston Ave. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday or to the front porch at 4242 N. Hamlin Ave. any time.
If you would like to help us purchase the specific items we need, please make a donation at www.irvingparkfoodpantry.org, via PayPal, Venmo, credit cards or Google Pay. You also can mail a check to Irving Park Food Pantry, 4256 N. Ridgeway Ave, Chicago IL 60618 and mark it for “special programs.”
Thank you for your help with this important program!

10/08/2026

Thanks to Block Club Chicago for highlighting our Capital Campaign, Building Our Future, Feeding Our Community.

We're in the final stretch of our $1.8 million capital campaign to fund our new home at 4111 North Pulaski Road, with just $255,000 left to go.

The 4,500-square-foot facility will be fully ADA accessible and designed to feel like a grocery store. It will feature:

- A walk-in refrigerated space
- Private rooms for staff to assist clients with SNAP and program applications
- Dedicated space for winter coat drives and community initiatives
- An expanded waiting area

You can help us reach our goal by donating at www.irvingparkfoodpantry.org

Read more at https://buff.ly/hQwu17H

The Irving Park Community Food Pantry is looking to raise $255,000 for the project after securing more than $1.5 million so far.

10/08/2026

A bright, sunny October morning, our first distribution of the month, brought out 96 clients to shop for food for their 268 family members. Volunteers also made deliveries to 14 homebound clients, bringing the total families receiving food to 110..
We continue to see clients who haven’t visited us in months or even years returning as economic conditions make it harder for them to stretch their food budgets each month.
Our registration team worked smoothly, getting clients onto the shopping floor quickly, and we were able to close again right on time with everyone having selected their food choices.
We appreciate all the hard work our volunteers put in every week to help us meet our motto of being “Neighbors Helping Neighbors!”

10/05/2026

The Greater Chicago Food Depository delivered our order of more than 8,300 pounds of food this morning, kicking off our preparations for our first distribution of food for the month of October.
We’ll be open from 9 a.m. to noon on Wednesday for any families in need of food in our priority service area of 60641 or 60618 ZIP codes, who can come in to the Pantry (4256 N. Ridgeway Ave.) to shop our full array of food, toiletries and pet food. Those outside of that area can receive a basic amount of food or use this link to find a closer pantry: https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org/find-food
Our priority-service clients also will be able to shop for winter hats, scarves and gloves for their family members in our program that continues all month.
*Please note:* We are providing expanded indoor waiting space for clients due to the inclement weather that can happen at any time.
If you would like to help us purchase all of the items needed, please make a donation at our website, www.irvingparkfoodpantry.org, via PayPal, Venmo, credit cards or Google Pay. You also can mail a check to Irving Park Food Pantry, 4256 N. Ridgeway Ave, Chicago IL 60618. Thank you for your continued support of our mission to be “Neighbors Helping Neighbors!”

10/04/2026

Winter wear drive starts this week!
The calendar has quickly turned to October, which means Pantry volunteers will be handing out warm winter hats, scarves and gloves to our eligible clients families this week!
All clients in the 60618 and 60641 ZIP codes will be able to select accessories for their family members. We hope to have enough to allow each to make choices for all kids and adults.
If you haven’t yet donated, please do so to ensure we have enough for each distribution this month. To donate via our Amazon registry, visit
https://www.amazon.com/hz/wishlist/ls/3020D4UJVJJZ6?ref_=wl_share.
Locally purchased donations can be taken to the Big Helpers store at 4184 N. Elston Ave. from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday or to the front porch at 4242 N. Hamlin Ave. any time.
If you would like to help us purchase the specific items we need, please make a donation at www.irvingparkfoodpantry.org, via PayPal, Venmo, credit cards or Google Pay. You also can mail a check to Irving Park Food Pantry, 4256 N. Ridgeway Ave, Chicago IL 60618 and mark it for “special programs.”
Please limit your donation to ONLY new hats, scarves and gloves. We have no space to offer other items.
If you have a large donation or want to run a drive, please email Lynne at [email protected] for tips or to arrange delivery. Thank you for your support!