It’s sort of like a tiny library that you may see stationed in someone’s front yard, but instead of books, this particular wood-framed pantry is stocked with nonperishable food items.

Paige Spaulding, a Lehi mother and youth group adviser in her church group, said the idea came to her last month during the recent government shutdown, as many Utahns faced uncertainty about their November SNAP benefits.

While the shutdown is over, and the holidays are in view, the season doesn’t eliminate the reality of the 1 in 7 Utahns, including 1 in 6 children, who don’t know where their next meal will come from.

“I was trying to think, how can I teach the youth that we need to help our community,” she said. “We could donate to a food bank, but I wanted to have the youth be able to see something more

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