With the holidays coming up, the Salvation Army is looking to bolster their food pantry supply and they’re asking help from island residents to do so.

It’s their mission to offer a hand to anyone in need, no matter who they are and where they come from and they’ve been doing just that. Captai Yasmin Acosta of the Salvation Army Guam Chapter shared that for the month of August alone, they’ve helped hundreds of residents in need.

"We have provided over 44,000 meals to our community and it’s any village of the island can come here and to receive services," she said.

They’ve also provided 187 meals to island residents suffering from homelessness by giving out easy to open canned food to them. But although they do so much to help, they’re now asking the people of Guam to open their hearts to help them fill up their food pantries again in anticipation for the holidays.

"We know that this is temporary. We know that the shelves are empty temporarily because we have a lot of faith in the generosity of the people here on Guam, but we are in need right now, especially with the holidays on our heels. Our supplies are running really low and they tend to do so towards the end of the year, which is now and the need just grows more than usual during the holidays, so we are accepting shelf-stable donations, canned food, boxed food for the upcoming months," Captain Acosta stated. "So if you have any extra or if you would be willing to support or sponsor your local food pantry here at Salvation Army, you can always drop off here Monday through Friday from 9 to 3 pm, would be perfect."

Foods that can be donated include canned goods such as canned tuna, canned stews, shelf stable milk and milk substitutes, canned vegetables with no or low-sodium and any canned foods that aren't close to expiring.

Should you have any questions about how to donate or what you can donate, you can call (671) 477-9855 or 888-4807 to schedule a pickup or dropoff donation at the Salvation Army’s Food Pantry.