Founded in 1891, Holy Rosary is a small but vibrant parish in the Gate City neighborhood of Birmingham. In the late 1970s, the Salesians, a religious order, were serving at the parish and, even though the details are unclear, it was under their care that the food pantry opened. The steady Catholic presence exemplified the words of Jesus, “For I was hungry and you gave Me food, I was thirsty and you gave Me drink, a stranger and you welcomed Me, naked and you clothed Me, ill and you cared for Me.” Today, the Holy Rosary Food Pantry, working with the Food Bank of Central Alabama, provides over 1,400 boxes of fresh fruit, vegetables, dairy products, bakery goods, shelf-stable vegetables, and meat each month, feeding over 900 families and 2,200 members of the Gate City and Woodlawn communities. In addition, the Clothes Closet at the Food Pantry provides free clothes and personal items to all in need.

Renovated in 2022, the Holy Rosary Food Pantry continues to be a reality thanks to many dedicated volunteers, including Mary Pat Manogue, Tracy Bragg, Mike Geerts, Coach Allen Murphy, and Father Eric Gami, the pastor of the parish. Over the past decades, Sisters Rita Vogelsang, Jackie Debone, and Mary Robert each took their turn guiding the ministry, ensuring a faithful witness to the social justice teachings of the Catholic Church.

Undoubtedly, Holy Rosary Parish has been a beacon of hope in an area of Birmingham characterized by poverty, materially and otherwise. The Holy Rosary faith community’s love for God is lived by their devotion to the well-being of their neighbors. Each morning, before the volunteers open the pantry’s doors to bring food to those waiting for nourishment, they pray that they will see Christ in the face of every person who comes for help. In the words of volunteer Mike Geerts, the mission of the Food Pantry is about “seeing Christ in the people, [and] them seeing Christ in us.”