Mystery donor leaves 1,500 pounds of snacks at Marble Falls food pantry

The Helping Center of Marble Falls opened on July 27 to almost a literal ton of donations from an unknown source on its doorstep. The food pantry is hoping to hear from the mystery donor, who provided an estimated $5,000 worth of snacks that will be distributed to Highland Lakes families in need.

“(The donation) is a huge Christ blessing,” said Sam Pearce, executive director of The Helping Center, in an Aug. 1 interview with DailyTrib.com. “It just gives us affirmation that we’re doing something right here.”

Pearce arrived at the center, 1016 Broadway in Marble Falls, on Saturday morning and found 15-20 large trash bags surrounding the front doors. His initial thought was that each of the bags contained plastic grocery sacks, a common donation, but he quickly found they were filled to the brim with snacks.

Hundreds of pounds of chips, jerky, candy, breakfast bars, and more were unloaded and sorted onto pantry shelves for its patrons.

Pearce suspects the donation might have come from an area convenience store, which is not uncommon, but the sheer amount of goods is unprecedented. He also noted that the donations can be used as a tax write-off, so somebody usually claims responsibility. But that had not happened as of Thursday morning.

The Helping Center is totally reliant upon donations, mystery or otherwise, to help the community.

“We serve about 2,500 families per month,” Pearce said. “We could not do that without mystery blessings, donations, food drives, all of that stuff.”

The center served 7,000 people in June 2024 alone, 1,108 of whom were children.

“Food is so expensive, and if we can save people $500 a month, then they can use that money for other necessities,” Pearce said.

To learn how to assist The Helping Center or see if you qualify for a helping hand, contact 830-693-5689 or info@helpingcenter.org.

dakota@thepicayune.com