WAUPUN — The Brandon Community Food Pantry will be dissolving this summer in a merger with the Waupun Food Pantry.
Donors to the Brandon Food Pantry were notified of the merger in January, which explained that they will be winding down operations through June. Families were notified in March.
The Brandon Community Food Pantry has been managed by Denise Belmer since 2007 and operated out of the old fire truck garage at Brandon Village Hall. Prior to that, Brandon families came to the Waupun but some residents saw a need for a more local organization and got one set up in Brandon.
The Brandon Community Food Pantry was originally established with help from Terri Respalje, manager of the Waupun Food Pantry.
“When I started in 2000, we oversaw Brandon, so they would come to Waupun anyway,” said Respalje. “I got contacted by some of the churches who wanted to get together and maybe have their own in Brandon, so the people aren’t driving, so I went and showed them what to do and what to get and walked them through it. And it was a real smooth transition.”
“I just feel like, if nobody wants to step up to it, then somebody has to,” she said.
The Village never charged rent from the Brandon Food Pantry, and they’ve been well supported by the community. The pantry’s board has five members, but no one was able to or motivated enough to step up to manage it after Belmer expressed her intention to stop managing the organization, so they decided the best course of action was to merge with Waupun.
“This is going to be a good change, and I think better for them,” said Belmer. “The Waupun Food Pantry has more to offer in terms of commodities.”
Brandon Food Pantry serves about 20 families per month, while the Waupun Food Pantry currently serves about 120. Respalje said that about four Brandon families have already contacted the Waupun Food Pantry.
“I was just glad they could take it over,” said Belmer. “Because you know you don’t want to just drop the ball on all of it, and I’ve been trying to find a replacement for probably two or three years, you know, and nobody wants to put the time into it.”
While the Brandon Food Pantry would allow people to come in to select items they had available, the Waupun Food Pantry has a form families can fill out for what they need—including info on clothing sizes and preferences, food sensitivities and allergies, and requests for household items. These items would then be packed in a care package for families to pick up.
“We’re just excited that you know we have the facility, we have the space, and we have Terry,” said Joel Sterk, who is on the Waupun Food Pantry board. “She’s very experienced at what she’s doing and now we’re able to help out Brandon. It’s a great opportunity, and the board was actually pretty excited to be able to help out.”
The Brandon Food Pantry will cease operations on July 1, 2026. Remaining stock will go to the Waupun Food Pantry, who will now also serve the families in the Brandon area. Belmer plans to continue helping at the Waupun Food Pantry as a volunteer after the merge.
