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Operation Blessing serves communities of the south and southwest suburbs but its territory also includes the far southern portions of Chicago.

form :    79th street on the north

to :       175th street on the south

from :    Halsted Ave. on the east

to :       Route 45 on the west

It is unusual for a pantry to have such wide coverage but the goal is to help as many people as possible.
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Each month more than 800 families receive assistance through Operation Blessing. The facility opens its doors four days a week for a half a day.  Additional time is spent unloading food, separating and organizing it and packing it into boxes or bags for distribution. There is a paid manager to oversee and to coordinate daily activities, all work is done by volunteers.

In addition to the regular food assistance Operation Blessing also participates in special holiday efforts.  Since 1994 the organization has operated the Bread of Life Program.  This event delivers a generous food supply and Easter treats to the especially needy families in the service area each Easter Holiday season. In late summer school supplies are collected and distributed to help families through financial crises. And as Christmas approaches, with help from Toys for Tots and other groups, parents can choose toys so that everyone will have something under the Christmas tree.

Operation Blessing of Southwest Chicagoland : FOOD PANTRY : 708-597-6326 : Located at 4330 Midlothian Turnpike, Crestwood, IL. 60445 : © ® 2009 1JC2GOD
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Service Area Boundaries

Started in 1982 the organization was originally located in a small office in Worth with a closet size pantry and one refrigerator. Clothing was kept in a forty foot truck trailer located several miles away in the parking lot of Moraine Valley Church founded solely by private donations, the group began to reach into the community. Operation Blessing began to develop a reputation for helping needy families and individuals, not only with food and clothing but also with counseling and care.

To raise funds the group found a local church that would donate space for a fundraising effort. So on a crisp October morning in 1983, the first Operation Blessing pancake breakfast was held, it is a tradition that remains to this day.

Today, Operation Blessing occupies a slightly smaller facility of about 2,000 square feet. A one ton box truck carries food from government assistance programs and donators to the facility for distribution. Donated refrigerators and freezers line the walls storing meat and fresh produce. And a small office area allows some private space for counseling those in need.

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