GANDER, N.L. — The brown box sitting on Sherri Dove’s front lawn in Gander draws your attention first.
Propped on a steel rod, it takes you an instant to notice the words "Take what you need" carved into the top of the box and the canned food contained inside.
At its base, there are small house plants, and some vegetables hang in a basket on one side of the box.
It looks like an outside version of your grandmother’s cupboard and acts as a community food bank of sorts. There are even plastic bags on the door for those who need more than one item.
“There needs to be more kindness. I tell my son, 'If you can’t find it, be it.'" — Sherri Dove
The door is never locked and if you need an item, you are encouraged — as the words above the door tell you — to take what you need.
This open-air pantry is something Dove always dreamed of doing.
Prior to living in Gander, she and her seven-year-old son, Dillon, lived in Ontario. When they would go for walks, she would see similar pantries on lawns in her neighbourhood.
She would look at those boxes and think that someday when she had a house of her own she would have the same thing.
“It was going to be a way to give back,” said Dove.
The opportunity to fulfil that desire didn’t come until December, when she bought a home in the central Newfoundland community.
When the snow receded, Dove got the materials she needed locally and built the box.
The first time she filled her community pantry with non-perishable foods and other essentials using her own money. When the weather allows, she has put out fruits and vegetables for people to take.
It has only been a week, but the traffic has been steady. The pantry is intended to work in the same way free libraries have worked in the past.
People can take what they want and all Dove asks is that they leave something behind for others.
She recognizes that during the COVID-19 pandemic cleanliness is important, and she makes sure to clean the box when she can. One person who availed of the box even left homemade face masks for people.
“The response has been amazing,” said Dove. “It is constant traffic.”
Lori Anstey visited the pantry in the first few days after Dove to see it for herself.
It was something she says will be a positive thing for people in Gander.
“This is such a great way to help the community,” said Anstey. “People can walk up to the pantry and take something without feeling ashamed or guilty.”
Seeing that response has been uplifting for her. She sees people using the service while leaving things for others, and sees others helping others.
“There is a lot of happiness and a lot of hope,” said Dove. “I hope more people do this.”
Her son will often ask if the pair can go and check the box. He has left frozen treats for any young children who might be visiting with their parents.
In those moments, Dove is amazed at her son. She had hoped he would see the importance of being kind to others and helping them.
She wanted to show him how easy it can be to help people, and he gets it.
“There needs to be more kindness,” said Dove. “I tell my son, "If you can’t find it, be it.'”
Not everyone wants to admit to needing help. Since she opened things up, Dove has seen people come after dark to take what they need.
She encourages people to do what they feel comfortable doing. She won’t ask any questions and expects no explanations.
“I understand what it can be like and I know what it is to struggle,” she said. “There is always someone who needs a helping hand.”
Nicholas Mercer is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter covering Central Newfoundland for Saltwire Network.
