Near empty shelves at Colfax FISH pantry

The Colfax FISH food pantry at the St. Patrick’s parish hall gets a sparse look at this time of year. FISH (Friends In Service to Humanity) uses the donated food supplies to fill food requests from Community Action Center. Over the last two months, food requests to the center have been up 25 percent from this time last year. Community Action Center’s Gail Webster said she believes families at this time of year face the extra stress of meeting back-to-school needs, including clothing and school supplies. The FISH pantry last week received a boost with a pickup truck load of donated food delivered by the staff of Whitman Hospital and Medical Center.