MEDINA — The kindness of a stranger will affect hundreds of county residents.

Last week a building owner offered his place to Feeding Medina County to be used for pantry space.

The warehouse donated to Feeding Medina County at 901 Lafayette Road. (IMAGE COURTESY OF CITY OF MEDINA)

Feeding Medina County was trying to find a bigger location for its pantry because it had outgrown its space at the National Guard Armory.

County Commissioner Pat Geissman said the owner, who did not wish to be named, called her last week and offered his building. After contracts are signed and furniture is found, the pantry could move as soon as this week, she said.

“He thought he could do something to help us, and he said he had been blessed and he wanted to share his blessings,” Geissman said. “We were very excited to get the phone call.”

Geissman did not want to disclose the price until contracts are signed, but she said it was a minimal cost.

Geissman, Feeding Medina County Director Sandy Calvert and the owner toured the building at 901 Lafayette Road on Wednesday and decided it would perfectly fit the organization’s needs.

“We were just giving him hugs because he was being so generous,” Geissman said. “It will give us room for an office as well as plenty of pantry storage and an area for volunteers to work in.”

Calvert said that after touring the building she visited some volunteers working in the pantry at the armory to tell them the news.

“It was a very emotional thing,” Calvert said. “One of the volunteers started to cry.”

A man who was volunteering at the pantry gave Calvert a big bear hug when he heard the news, she said.

“He said that I perform miracles and I said, ‘No, we all perform miracles,’ ” Calvert said.

“It will be fantastic,” she said. “It fits our office needs, it fits volunteer needs and it will be great for setting up for program needs. I can’t say enough about the space.”

One of the most important features of the new location is it will be accessible at any time, which was a problem at the armory.

Some of the approximately 4,000-square-foot space will be shared with Creative Housing, which will use it for storage. Medina Creative Housing provides independent housing for those with disabilities.

“They felt this is wonderful to get everything in one spot,” Geissman said of Creative Housing. “This is going to work out well, and it should be suitable for us for years to come.”

Contact Michelle Sprehe at (330) 721-4048 or msprehe@medina-gazette.com.

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