Pantry ensures veterans enjoy a Turkey Day feast

Arriving at the Northwest Montana Veterans Food Pantry in Evergreen on Monday for a box stuffed full of Thanksgiving fixings, Kathleen Howard came with an offering of her own for the volunteers working during the holiday week: stroganoff.

“What would I do without it,” Howard said of the U.S. 2 pantry. “They’re so good. They’re like family here.”

The widow of George “Moose” Howard, who served in the U.S. Navy during World War II, Kathleen Howard is one of 89 area residents with ties to military service expected to drop by the pantry for a holiday food box in the days leading up to Thanksgiving. Each kit is outfitted with turkey or ham, stuffing, potatoes, gravy, rolls, pie and “everything you need for fixings,” said Cinnamon Davis-Hall, community outreach specialist for the pantry, which also features a thrift store open to the general public and operates Camp Ponderosa in Bigfork.