The Laker/Lutz News

Jacquie Petet

Local firm steps up for students

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Christian Social Service (CSS) is a nonprofit organization that supports the Pasco County area, with most of the requested help made by families and single mothers.

From left: DAVRON employees Eric Maddox and David Coreen; Jacquie Petet, Christian Social Services executive director; and, DAVRON employees Leah Stevens, Blake Coen and Matthew Noble. (Courtesy of Lacy McElfresh)

The CSS thrift store and food pantry, at 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., is filled with donations from local churches and private contributors.

DAVRON, a Land O’ Lakes-based executive search and outplacement firm, reached out to Jacquie Petet, executive director of CSS, to see how the company could help, according to a news release.

Petet expressed the most urgent need was for school supplies and backpacks because students will return to in-person learning for the 2021-2022 school year, and CSS was expecting to help hundreds of families. The nonprofit provides each student with a backpack, school supplies, and $20 toward its thrift store for back-to-school clothing.

In answer to Petet’s request, DAVRON hosted a School Supply Drive. With the help of the community and The Laker/Lutz News readers, DAVRON was able to donate 80 brand new backpacks and a multitude of school supply items to CSS.

These local businesses, as well as other private donors, stepped up to the plate, as well: Hungry Harry’s, Aroma Joe’s, Sweet Frog, The Flying Squirrel, Land O’ Lakes Family Fitness and Station House BBQ.

In addition, DAVRON employees contributed $1,550 to the nonprofit, which they raised at their own Charity Challenge Fishing Tournament.

Christian Social Services currently is accepting donations on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and can be reached at 813-995-0088.

Published July 14, 2021

DAVRON employees, back row: Austin Lopez, Diana Allen, Julia Byrd, Jeremy Jacobs, Blake Coen, Jesse Blunt, Dalton Fitzgerald, Kenneth Beiter, Matthew Noble and Wyatt Durney. Middle row: Adrianna Marquez, Ashley Jachens, Merinn Jacobs, Lacy McElfresh, Sasha Ortiz, Nicholas Bertrand and Christian Cornier. Front row: Megan McKee, Leah Stevens, Elijah Gallatin, David Coreen and Eric Maddox.
The DAVRON team collected, organized and donated a variety of school supply items, to help Christian Social Services serve students in need.
David Coreen and Wyatt Durney display a couple of the fish they caught during DAVRON’s charity fishing tournament, to benefit Christian Social Services.
The DAVRON team collected and donated 80 backpacks as part of its School Supply Drive to benefit Christian Social Services.

Thrift store seeks to push up sales

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Christian Social Services of Lutz & Land O’ Lakes Inc., gets a lot of visitors, as people bring donations to the thrift store at 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., which resembles a large red barn.

But, the charity had been trying to figure out a way to capture some of that traffic, before it headed back onto Land O’ Lakes Boulevard, said Jacquie Petet, executive director of the charitable organization.

Jacquie Petet and Patty Byers work at Christian Social Services Thrift Store. The nonprofit organization provides help, in a variety of ways, to people who are struggling. (B.C. Manion/Staff Photos)
Jacquie Petet and Patty Byers work at Christian Social Services Thrift Store. The nonprofit organization provides help, in a variety of ways, to people who are struggling.
(B.C. Manion/Staff Photos)

That’s when they came up with the idea of issuing $3 in Red Barn Bucks to anyone who brings in a donation, Petet said.

The store needs to sell more merchandise to help cover payroll, utilities and other expenses, Petet said.

“We are a very low-budget organization. If you look around, you could probably find three things in this office that we actually paid money for. We just wait until it comes through the back door,” Petet said.

There are four employees and about two dozen regular volunteers. It also gets help, periodically, from youth groups and community organizations.

Despite its small staff, the organization provides great services, said Loretta Parker, who was at the thrift store recently to pick up some food from the pantry.

“If it hadn’t been for this place, I would be so far under,” Parker said. “They are great with every kind of help,” she said.

Volunteers Nancy Taylor, Beverly Maples and Mary Whitaker said they enjoy helping out.

Taylor was busy sorting bakery items on a recent day, while Maples and Whitaker stocked shelves in the food pantry.

“I like doing it,” Maples said. “I love the people here.”

Christian Social Services Thrift Store, 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., is trying to encourage people who drop off donations to come inside and shop away. They’re giving $3 in Red Barn Bucks to spend in the store to anyone who makes a donation.
Christian Social Services Thrift Store, 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., is trying to encourage people who drop off donations to come inside and shop away. They’re giving $3 in Red Barn Bucks to spend in the store to anyone who makes a donation.

The food and other services that Christian Social Services provides are much-needed in the community, Taylor said.

Patty Byers said she first became acquainted with the thrift store when she needed help.

“That was 13 years ago,” she said.

When Byers got back on her feet, she became a volunteer, and then she became a part-time employee.

“It’s a lovely place to work,” Byers said.

“We see people coming in that can’t feed their children, and when they leave, their shoulders are little more up, their head is a little higher,” Byers said.

“It’s a wonderful place,” she said.

Byers said they can also provide encouragement and remind those who are struggling that, “even though things seem bad, they can get better.”

People who enjoy thrift shopping will find much to peruse at the thrift shop, including clothing, housewares, interior décor, books, china and other items.

Christian Social Services opened its doors in August 1987. It is supported by churches in Lutz and Land O’ Lakes, and serves families and individuals in north Hillsborough and Central Pasco counties.

Loretta Parker was at Christian Social Services Thrift Store recently to pick up some groceries. She said the charitable organization has been a saving grace for her.
Loretta Parker was at Christian Social Services Thrift Store recently to pick up some groceries. She said the charitable organization has been a saving grace for her.

The organization provides backpacks, school supplies and clothing for school-aged children; food, clothing, household necessities for families, support services to people in crisis, and holiday food baskets and Christmas toys to families in need.

The organization also partners with FUMC-Lutz and Mission Tampa to provide free dental care for people in need within the community.

And, it sponsors and coordinates National Day of Prayer activities.

Its member churches are All Saints Lutheran, Candlewood Community Church, Church of the Lakes, First Baptist of Lutz, First United Methodist of Land O’ Lakes, First United Methodist of Lutz, Grace Family Church, Harvester United Methodist Church, Holy Trinity Lutheran, Idlewild Baptist, Land O’ Lakes Church of God and Tims Memorial Church.

Additional churches that provide support are Church of the Suncoast, Cornerstone Presbyterian, Heritage Christian Center, Keystone Community, and Village Presbyterian.

The thrift store is open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday. The emergency food pantry is open during those hours, too.

Christian Social Services Thrift Store
Hours: Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
What: Clothing, linens, shoes, dishes, jeans, small appliances, jewelry, books, home décor
Where: 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., Land O’ Lakes
Deals: Every month, items marked with a different color are on sale. Everyone who donates goods receives a $3 coupon to spend in the store.
For more information: (813) 995-0088

Published February 24, 2016

Food pantry ‘blessed’ to provide for those in need

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The big red building on Land O’ Lakes Boulevard might not fetch more than a causal glance from some passersby, but many who step through the doors say it’s a place where blessings are granted regularly.

The nonprofit food pantry located just south of Ehren Cutoff has been helping feed area families in need since 1987. Although not always situated in its current 5514 Land O’ Lakes Blvd., home, the agency has grown through the years to meet the needs of the community.

Mike Head packs grocery bags for clients of Christian Social Services. (Photo by Sherri Lonon)
Mike Head packs grocery bags for clients of Christian Social Services. (Photo by Sherri Lonon)

Holding true to its Christian roots, the pantry has very few rules for those who receive assistance. Individuals or families in need just need to stop by during regular hours to receive emergency food staples. Help is given on an honor system, explained Jacquie Petet, the agency’s executive director.

While tons of food goes out of the agency’s doors each month to hundreds of families in need, Petet said the community always steps up to make sure the food doesn’t run out.

“We are blessed,” she said, noting that 12 area churches and their congregations assist in keeping the pantry’s shelves stocked. Area residents also lend a hand by donating nonperishable food items, money and extras, such as presents for children during the holidays and backpacks at back-to-school time.

Christian Social Services also is partially self-supporting thanks to an onsite thrift store that’s open to the public.

Even though support for the mission is strong, Petet said additional help is always welcomed and needed. The last few years especially have been difficult with the economy down and donations to regular food drives, such as the postal carriers’ Stamp Out Hunger drive, down with it.

Before the economy turned a few years ago, the postal drive brought enough food into the pantry to handle demand for months. That’s no longer the case, Petet said.

“The last few years, it’s been substantially down,” she said.

There are many ways area residents can help out, said Llurah Utt, a longtime volunteer at Christian Social Services. Not only can they donate food, money or even items for the thrift store, but volunteers are always needed as well.

“We always welcome people that want to volunteer,” Utt said.

Christian Social Services operates its pantry and community thrift store with the help of three full-time employees — including Petet — and two part-time workers. About 20 volunteers fill in the gaps to make sure shelves are stocked, items are sorted, and bags of food are prepared for those in need.

“Our volunteers are a hundred times better than most people’s employees,” Petet said.

Employee Mike Head said the agency has been a godsend to his family and he’s been “blessed” to help others in return. Head began working at Christian Social Services several years ago after he was laid off from a full-time cable installer job.

While Mike now works at the agency, his wife Bobbi and two children, Bianka, 8, and Bryan, 10, are often at his side volunteering to help other families facing difficult times.

“It’s nice to be able to instill that,” Head said of giving back.

Christian Social Services’ pantry and thrift store are open Tuesdays through Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information, visit CSS-HelpingHands.org, or call (813) 995-0088.

— Sherri Lonon