Having access to healthy, affordable food can be a challenge, especially when a community is largely made up of rural ranch and farm land. Even more so when the nearest grocery store is 20 miles away. These factors exist in the southeast part of Kansas, where the small town of Caney is at the center of Kansas United School District #436 and has been designated a USDA “food desert”. Thankfully, Caney Valley Food Pantry is dedicated to tackling these issues and serving its neighbors in need. 

It was with these challenges in mind that Kim Bright was spurred on to coordinate with the Caney Community Betterment Group and form the Caney Valley Food Pantry in early 2018. With Caney at the center of the vast counties of Montgomery and Chautauqua, the statistics painted a stark picture. Montgomery County was listed in the bottom 10 percent of Kansas county health rankings, and Chautauqua County trailed close behind. Census data showed a poverty rate over 18 percent in the area, which was 50 percent higher than the Kansas average. In these two counties, the food pantry began to address rural hunger and serve the entire area of United School District #436. 

Originally, the Caney Valley Food Pantry would package and distribute food boxes monthly to the area’s low-income elderly and disabled population. Additionally, the pantry had emergency food boxes available for anyone experiencing sudden distress, along with angel tree food boxes for low-income families at Christmas time. It also coordinated with the Catholic Charities Mary Martha Organization to distribute excess produce from the local Walmart distribution center. Today, Caney Valley Food Pantry has: 

• Initiated a school produce backpack service for more than 100 reduced lunch program students in conjunction with the Caney Valley High School Food and Consumer Class 

• More than doubled its produce outreach to 1,400 recipients 

• Provided food to multiple community meal programs and area food pantries targeting several hundred low-income families and individuals 

• Moved into a larger facility to simulate a grocery store-like environment for the community 

• Added other vital assistance services through the Caney Valley Agape Network  

As Atmos Energy continues Fueling Safe and Thriving Communities, we are extremely proud of our partnership with Caney Valley Agape Network and Food Pantry. Since the partnership was established in 2018, Atmos Energy has donated more than $10,000 to this fight against hunger. Most recently, several Atmos Energy employees volunteered their time to fill backpacks with items such as breakfast cereal, peanut butter, granola bars, popcorn, goldfish crackers, ramen noodles and macaroni and cheese for more than 400 students to enjoy over the winter break. 

“This small-town food pantry serves southeast Kansas communities in a big way,” said Atmos Energy Public Affairs Manager Aaron Bishop. “The Caney Valley Agape Network and Food Pantry is an invaluable resource for those in need, and we are proud to support their mission each and every year.” 

While taking larger donations from Kansas Food Bank and area retailers, the food pantry distributes excess food to area community partners like the Independence Food Basket and school districts throughout Chautauqua and Montgomery Counties.  

To learn more about and to support Caney Valley Food Pantry, please visit: https://caneybetterment.org/caney-valley-food-pantry