From left, front row: Canton Helpline Food Pantry (CHFP) volunteer Deb DiIeso, Bank of Canton Director Michael Galer, Canton Helpline President Diane Tynan, Past CHFP Co-Director Mary Buckley, Bank of Canton Director Marian Pendergast, and CHFP volunteer Emily Prigot. Back row: CHFP volunteer Peg Mead, Bank of Canton VP/Retail Branch Administrator Eric Cappellano (NMLS #1076424), and CHFP volunteer Perry Jenkins.
CANTON, Mass. (November 18, 2025) – Bank of Canton recently donated $10,000 to the Canton Helpline Food Pantry to help provide healthy food and personal hygiene supplies to a rising number of Canton residents.
The CHFP experienced a significant increase in clients during the government shutdown amid uncertainty surrounding the status of the country’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). “We registered six new families this week alone,” said CHFP volunteer Peg Mead at the time. “Usually we might have one.”
Added Mary Buckley, a CHFP past director and continuing volunteer, “We served almost 40 families this week, and quite a few were SNAP families. The unknown has been causing a lot of panic.”
While the processing of SNAP benefits has resumed, CHFP supplies are running low after the past several weeks and need to be replenished.
“This donation from Bank of Canton is so greatly appreciated,” said Diane Tynan, president of the Canton Helpline. “During these difficult times, the generosity of Bank of Canton reminds us that community is built on compassion. This $10,000 gift will put meals on the tables of families who need it most, and we are deeply grateful.”
Bank of Canton also held a special collection drive this month that benefitted the CHFP, the Friendly Food Pantry in Randolph, and Interfaith Social Services’ Food Pantry in Quincy. During the “Food Like Jagger” food drive, customers who dropped off five or more items for donation could enter a prize drawing for a pair of tickets to see Maroon 5 at TD Garden. The promotion generated numerous shopping bags of food and personal care items, especially in Canton, where CHFP volunteers made multiple pickups at both Bank of Canton branch locations.
“The Canton Helpline Food Pantry is an important lifeline for many families and individuals in Canton,” said Michael F. Lindberg, president and CEO of Bank of Canton. “We are genuinely grateful for their work, and for all those in our community – including our customers and employees – whose donations have helped them serve others in need.”
The CHFP accepts non-perishable food (cereal, pasta, and pasta sauce are always appreciated), personal care items, and household products on Mondays between 8:00 a.m. and 9:30 a.m. and by appointment. Bank of Canton’s branches at 557 Washington Street and 259 Turnpike Street in Canton also serve as drop-off locations Monday through Saturday during business hours.
The Canton Helpline, Inc., is a stand-alone non-profit 501(c)(3) organization funded by private donations and grants. For more information, visit cantonmahelpline.org.
About Bank of Canton
Established in 1835, Bank of Canton is a Massachusetts-chartered mutual savings bank that offers its consumer, business and government banking customers access to a full array of deposit, loan, investment and convenience service options. As a mutual savings bank, the bank has no stockholders and acts exclusively in the best interests of its customers and communities. The bank lends throughout Massachusetts, and has branches in Canton, Quincy and Randolph and a mortgage center in Auburn. All deposits are fully insured between the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Depositors Insurance Fund (DIF). For more information, visit www.ibankcanton.com. Member FDIC. Member DIF. Equal Housing Lender. NMLS #408169.
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