How Manna House Midlothian is Meeting the Need in Ellis County

Though their pantry and pop-up pantries are the main outreach, Manna House’s team stands ready to serve in any way.

 When Stephanie* and her children open the refrigerator in their new apartment now, they can hardly believe all of the options inside. Just a few days before, it was mostly bare.

“It’s beautiful, it’s colorful, it’s amazing,” says Stephanie, who visited Manna House Midlothian on a recent weekday. Stephanie is a single mom to four kids who moved to Ellis County after fleeing domestic violence. After several years as a full-time mom and homeschool teacher, she found a job in the service industry.

It was while working one day that she encountered Norma and Craig Belcher, the executive director and director of operations at Manna House Midlothian. They heard that Stephanie and her kids were sleeping on an air mattress, and the Belchers encouraged her to come visit them as soon as she could.

“We had nothing,” Stephanie says. Still, she added, during her first visit to Manna House, she only wanted to take a mattress. After all, they had some food. And she was perfectly content to eat less so her kids would have something at each meal. “Our fridge was pretty bare, but I was embarrassed to say anything,” she says.

Norma, Craig and the team at Manna House, however, were not letting her leave with just one item. They took Stephanie into the pantry and helped her select fruits, vegetables, canned goods, pantry staples, toiletries and even some fun snacks for her kids. And when they learned it was one of the kids’ birthdays the following day, they added a chocolate cake plus some decorations so the family could celebrate at home. Craig even found out what was on the child’s wish list, tracked down a gift and hid it in the back of Stephanie’s car so her child could open it during their party.

“I’m so overwhelmed,” Stephanie says. “This is amazing… for this community to help us out means so much. We had nothing.”

While Stephanie’s story may be unique, Craig and Norma say the way Manna House’s team came together to serve her is not.

The nonprofit that was founded in 1992 works to meet the needs of those in crisis in their community while also bringing hope, encouragement and stability to those they serve. Their pantry in Midlothian is the main entry point for neighbors, but they also have a smaller pantry in Italy, and they’ve grown their pop-up pantry network over the last year to include 17 locations that distribute thousands of pounds of food each week in every corner of Ellis County. Together, those efforts have meant more than 1.5 million meals distributed in the county so far this year.

The need for growth in food distribution was driven by an increased need from neighbors in their county, Norma says.

“At the beginning it was those who were underemployed or unemployed,” Norma says. “Now, it can be a two-income family and they’re still struggling to pay their bills.”

Manna House has also been serving more neighbors who are living in combined households, whether multiple families under one roof, grandparents raising their grandchildren, or older parents whose unemployed adult children have moved back in. Norma notes that the number of people experiencing domestic violence, like Stephanie, or homelessness has also been on the rise in Ellis County.

“You never know what someone is going through,” Craig says.

Along with food, Manna House can provide clothing, hygiene and household items plus financial assistance for rent, utilities, prescriptions and other health costs.

The Belchers say many of those on their staff once needed a hand up and they’re now in this ministry to pay it forward.

Stephanie says it’s an effort that is making a world of difference, for her family, certainly, but also for many others.

“We’re so thankful,” she says. “It’s been a huge blessing all around.” 

*Name and some details changed for the privacy and safety of the neighbor.