Reach Out Lakota pantry visits jump 22% before food drive

Reach Out Lakota saw a 22 percent jump in client visits in 2025 as nearly 200 new families sought help for the first time.

The West Chester-based pantry, the primary food and clothing resource for families in West Chester and Liberty townships, assisted residents more than 16,200 times and served over 3,200 individuals, according to a Lakota Local Schools district announcement. Client visits have risen every year since 2020.

The numbers land as the district launches its 19th annual Stuff the Bus food drive. The collection runs Monday, Oct. 12, through Friday, Oct. 23. Families, staff and community members can drop off canned goods and other non-perishable items at any Lakota school or the district's Central Office. At Cherokee Elementary School in Liberty Township, students can bring donations to their homeroom class or the front office.

Just over half the people Reach Out Lakota serves are children under 18.

Approximately 10,400 residents in the two townships live below the poverty line, and the pantry assists roughly a third of them. Brenda Yablonsky, CEO and executive director of Reach Out Lakota, said in the Sept. 29 district announcement that the organization faces increasing food insecurity and a growing number of families seeking support.

Lakota Superintendent Ashley Whitely said 30 percent of district families are considered economically disadvantaged. Stuff the Bus donations help "our own students and their families who don't have access to a healthy breakfast or enough food to make it through the weekend," Whitely said in the same announcement.

The drive is Reach Out Lakota's largest annual collection event and arrives as shelves thin out after the summer rush. Organizers are aiming to match or exceed the all-time record of nearly 60,000 items, set two years ago.

A traveling trophy goes to the school that collects the most items per student. Independence Elementary won the trophy in 2025. The winning school also gets a visit from the Jolly Treats ice cream truck.

Upcoming at Cherokee Elementary