Jill Schramm/MDN Katie Ramsdell stocks a Blessing Box outside Vincent United Methodist Church as Derek and Wirtz Ramsdell stand by to assist.

A Minot social worker who saw unmet needs in her community has enlisted the help of her family and church to offer a solution known as Blessing Boxes.

Katie Ramsdell, her husband, Derek, and their young son, Wirtz, filled the new Blessing Boxes Friday with food, hygiene and clothing items that are free for the taking by anyone with a need. Derek Ramsdell built the two boxes, which are located on the east and west sides of Vincent United Methodist Church. The church is located at 1024 2nd St. SE, behind Town & Country Center.

Katie Ramsdell said the idea behind the Blessing Boxes came from a similar project in Bismarck.

“The moment I saw it, I wanted one here in our community. So I brought it up to the church. We took it on as a youth project,” she said.

The Blessing Boxes will be stocked as necessary to keep them well supplied. On Sundays, Panera bread will be added. Thanks to donations, the project started with a selection of tennis shoes to give away, along with socks and underwear. The boxes also will be stocked with Bibles.

“But I want the community to know that if there’s things that they need that aren’t out there, we probably have them inside,” Ramsdell said. Items such as soups, lotions, shampoo, milk or juice will be kept indoors to be protected from freezing. People are invited to visit the church office to pick up the items. The year-round project also will have items that can’t tolerate heat stored indoors in the summer.

Suggestions are welcomed for needed items that aren’t included in the Blessing Boxes but should be offered, Ramsdell said.

Community donations always are welcome, too. People may drop off items at the church or simply place them in the Blessing Boxes.

Ramsdell said Vincent is situated in a neighborhood where many low-income residents live, as indicated by the number of free and reduced-price meals offered at Washington School. Vincent wants to serve its neighbors, but it also hopes to remove misconceptions about not being accepted that have kept people away from the church, she said.

For her husband and herself personally, she added, the boxes are a way to honor the faith shown by previous generations of their family while demonstrating their own faith to the next generation.