Local efforts to help those struggling with hunger got a 16-ton boost last week, courtesy of the humanitarian arm of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The 32,000 pounds of items from LDS Charities — which ranged from kidney beans to macaroni to dish soap — were distributed among 16 different organizations in Powell, Cody and Lovell.

“Everyone said, ‘Oh, this is such a blessing; oh, we needed this so badly,’” said church member Janet Fenton of Cody, who coordinated the effort.

“Different organizations reach different people,” Fenton said, “and every organization felt they had really needy people and [that] it was a real blessing for them.”

The “humanitarian surplus truck” was loaded with goods at a church storehouse in Salt Lake City and arrived in Cody on Wednesday morning.

“We don’t know what comes on it, and we can’t order it,” Fenton explained, “... we are just asked to divide it between [organizations] in the community.”

Fenton, who’s the statewide coordinator of the church’s JustServe community service initiative, reached out to area food pantries, nonprofits and churches.

“Anyone that had a place for it, had a pantry or room that wanted it got part of the distribution,” she said.

The commodities were temporarily stored at Y-Tex Corporation’s facilities off Big Horn Avenue. About 120 youth from the church’s congregations in Cody helped sort the materials Wednesday evening and recipients picked up their items Thursday morning, assisted by church members and Y-Tex personnel and equipment.

Beneficiaries included Mannahouse in Cody, Powell Valley Loaves and Fishes, the Powell and Cody senior centers, the Powell American Legion, Park County’s Crisis Intervention Services, TRiO Student Support Services at Northwest College, the Food for Kids program in Cody, Cody Holiday Helpers, St. Barbara's Catholic Church in Powell, St. John’s Episopal Church in Powell, the Powell Seventh-day Adventist Church, Streams of Life Church in Cody and the United Methodist Church in Lovell.

A small number of items also went to LDS congregations in Cody, Powell, Meeteetse, Otto and Burlington, Fenton said.

One local food pantry, Cody Cupboard, declined to participate. The organization’s chair, Dan Schein, told the Tribune he forgot to follow-up on the church’s initial outreach; as a result, when the church contacted him again ahead of Thursday’s event, Schein said he didn’t feel he had enough time to figure out the details.

The Cody Cupboard is hosting its annual food drive on Saturday, Nov. 2 at the Cody Auditorium.

Last week’s shipment added to others that the church — which just broke ground on a new temple in Cody — has provided to the area in recent years.

Trucks delivered some 96,000 pounds of meat, milk, canned goods and other commodities in December 2021, a couple months after the Cody temple was announced. Another shipment was delivered in March 2023, shortly before the temple location was unveiled.

The 9,950 square foot facility, which has faced opposition, is being constructed on a parcel of land that’s west of the Cody golf course.