The idea came out of a 1998 seminar about children in poverty conducted by the mission team from the Methodist church. When the seminar was over, a group of about 15 people decided they should try to do something to help the children of the community. So after attending a seminar in July 1998, assembling a board of directors in August, finding a home in September in the space formerly occupied by the Clyde Public Library, Chaney and her crew opened the resource center. We don't push it, but they know we're Christians. The center has seen a broad spectrum of people during its first year, from single mothers and young families to the elderly and homeless.
Some people come in every two weeks to get food from the pantry, others come in only once.
On a busy Tuesday afternoon in the center, Clyde resident Mary Grba browsed through a large back room, where the walls are lined with shelves of mugs, Tupperware, lampshades and the like. The center of the room is filled with a chest-high stack of cardboard boxes holding donated items. Volunteers helped her pick out a shopping cart full of housewares, and she and her daughter and two grandchildren moved into the next room, full of boxes and racks of clothing and shoes. She has had to visit the center before, and she said she also has brought others with her who needed help. In addition to having enough donated items, Chaney said the center also has managed to have enough money every month.