Homer is known as “the cosmic hamlet by the sea” or, alternately, as “a quaint little drinking village with a fishing problem.” While these epitaphs capitalize on Homer’s charm, behind the facade of a small, idyllic fishing town, Homer has a hunger problem.

Each Monday, starting at 9 a.m., dozens of Homer Community Food Pantry volunteers pull into the parking lot at the Homer United Methodist Church and begin pulling boxes of donated and purchased produce from a walk-in freezer, hauling milk crates of canned and dry goods down the stairs from the storage area, and setting up tables in long rows. For the next three hours, they sort and arrange, breaking briefly for a shared meal prepared in the church kitchen. At noon, they throw open the doors to welcome the hungry.

By this time, a line

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