BELFAST — As part of its efforts to help those experiencing food insecurity, Waldo County General Hospital has added a new self-service pantry shelf on its campus in Belfast.

The new “Help Yourself Shelf” is located within Waldo’s Cancer Care practice, on the ground floor of the Ludwig Medical Building, 116 Northport Ave., in Belfast.

“Belfast Soup Kitchen is excited for the opening of another MaineHealth ‘Help Yourself’ shelf to expand the distribution of nutritious food to our neighbors across Waldo County, which hand in hand with comprehensive health care will improve the overall wellness of our community,” said Cherie Merrill, executive director of the Belfast Soup Kitchen, in a WCGH news release.

Other Waldo County shelves can be found at WCMP Primary & Walk-in Care, located within the Biscone Medical Building at 119 Northport Avenue in Belfast; outside Waldo’s Access to Care office, on the first floor at 125 Northport Ave., in Belfast; and at Lincolnville Regional Health Center, located at 2399 Atlantic Highway in Lincolnville.

In early 2023, Belfast Soup Kitchen began supplying all the shelf-stable food items needed for the hospital’s pantry shelves. Since then, more than 15,000 pounds have food have been distributed through the shelves, which are all conspicuously placed in high-traffic areas and everyone is welcome to take items from them.

“Offering resources where people have already traveled to get to an appointment creates a low-barrier option that allows patients to choose foods that work for their families,” said Community Health Program Manager Deidre Dority, who oversees the hospital’s food access program.

Waldo set up its first food pantry shelves in 2022 thanks to grant funding from the Good Shephard Food Bank. The partnership with Belfast Soup Kitchen has ensured the shelves remained stocked and enabled the program to grow from two shelves to four over the past year.

Dority said her team weighs food deliveries when they arrive to track and measure the reach of their food security work. They also weigh the food delivered to each individual shelf, which helps illustrate where the greatest needs are and allows the team to respond with additional resources.

“We’re grateful to our community partners who have made it possible to provide this food assistance to our patients and community members,” said Jemma Penberthy, director of Community Health for Waldo and Pen Bay Medical Center in Rockport.

Waldo County General Hospital is part of MaineHealth, a not-for-profit integrated health system consisting of eight local hospital systems, a comprehensive behavioral healthcare network, diagnostic services, home health agencies, and more than 1,600 employed and independent physicians working together through an Accountable Care Organization. With more than 19,000 employees, MaineHealth is the largest health system in northern New England and provides preventive care, diagnosis and treatment to 1.1 million residents in Maine and New Hampshire. For more information, please visit wcgh.org.