It's always a warming sight to see the Good Shepherd Food Mobile in the parking lot across the street from the Congregational Church of Boothbay Harbor, on the corner of Eastern and Townsend avenues, especially on a particularly cold day.

Such was the case on March 2, when about 40 families showed up to receive free food.  Seven or eight people, including directors and volunteers of Boothbay Region Food Pantry, were pitching in to distribute the food. “Most often, 50 percent of the volunteers here are directors of the food pantry,” Fleet Davies, pantry co-president, said.

Davies was there at 12:45 p.m., rubbing his gloved hands together, while directing the process. “We're normally here until 1:30,” he said. “But I'm going to cut everybody free here in about 10 minutes. It's cold.”

The mobile delivers food to people in need. It comes to town about six times a year, mostly in the winter, according to Davies, who serves as the pantry’s co-president with Tom Wilson. The pantry is located in the basement of the First Congregational Church of Boothbay Harbor.

Jen McDonald, agency services field representative for Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine, said the food comes from a variety of sources.  Some food is purchased, some donated. “We receive grants from many different organizations,” she said. “This specific mobile truck, and the majority of the food, is funded by the Doree Taylor Foundation,” a Maine-based charitable foundation. McDonald said the mobile has been coming to Boothbay Harbor since at least 2011.

She said some food is also donated through salvage from grocery stores like Hannaford, Walmart and others. Maine farmers also help, through an organization called Mainers Feeding Mainers.

The Good Shepherd Food Mobile travels all over Maine, and is for anyone who has food insecurity, according to Davies. “That means if someone is out here from Oregon, and has no food, we ask no questions. The only question I ask is how many are in your family. I chart the number of people who come each time, and the amount of food we get is dependent on how many people come.”

Davies said that at different times, as many as 100-plus families show up; if there is an excess of food, families are allowed seconds.

On March 2, the mobile was handing out avocados, butter, brown rice, peanut butter, fresh mushrooms, Maine fresh frozen applesauce and other frozen products like fish, pizza and raviolis. And sometimes there is fresh meat and fish.

People are asked to bring their own boxes or bags, but some boxes are usually available.

Along with the food mobile, Efficiency Maine is usually there, handing out free LED light bulbs. “We're at most of the mobile sights, and we also offer the LED lights through food pantries and soup kitchens,” Efficiency Maine representative Steve Granholm said.

Davies said the volunteers usually know a month in advance when the food mobile will be coming back to Boothbay Harbor.

Good Shepherd Food Bank’s website states the food bank is “uniquely positioned to do the work of gathering and distributing the millions of pounds of food needed to supply hunger relief agencies throughout the state. Just this past year, we distributed more than 19 million meals to Mainers in need through our network of local partner agencies. This food is feeding and nourishing 178,000 of our neediest neighbors each year in every area of Maine, from Kittery to Fort Kent.”

The next scheduled Good Shepherd Food Mobile delivery in Boothbay Harbor is Thursday, April 6, from 11 a.m. to 12:30 pm.

For more information about the mobile and Good Shepherd Food Bank of Maine, visit https://www.gsfb.org/ or call 207-782-3554.