Last Friday was supposed to be a day off for Palmerton resident Clare Papay.

But Papay, an administrator of the Facebook page Palmerton Here and Now who also started an action group called Palmerton Helping Hands, ended up launching a crowdfunding drive for the Palmerton Food Pantry instead.

Papay said in the beginning, she just wanted to help the pantry out. But after seeing a televised campaign, where people could text in and have their donations matched by corporate contributors, Papay thought, “maybe that’s something that would work just within our town.”

So, she made a post on Here and Now; if the group could raise $500 for the pantry, a few other residents would match it.

As the weekend and early week wore on, Country Harvest, a local grocery store, also reached out, pledging to match up to another $500. The Palmerton Area School District Board promised the same amount, as did other area organizations and businesses.

By Thursday, Papay said, what was originally a personal donation had grown into over $5,500 raised for the Palmerton Food Pantry.

“I didn’t expect that it would get to that amount,” Papay said. “I had a feeling that if we gave people an easy way to donate money that they would do that.”

“To be able to hand over $5,000, that’s really awesome,” she added. “It really makes a difference.”

Barb Brader, co-director of the Palmerton Food Pantry, said Papay’s enthusiasm helped inspire the community to give to the pantry.

“She stepped up to the plate in a big way,” Brader said.

Brader said the pantry typically spends around $2,500 a month on food to serve people in the Palmerton Area School District. Since the coronavirus epidemic sparked a statewide shutdown, that number has skyrocketed; the pantry has seen the number of people it serves double in recent months.

Before the outbreak began, Brader added, some didn’t fully realize how many need the pantry in the Palmerton area.

“Until a situation gets desperate, some people hide their heads in the sand a little bit,” Brader said. “They don’t realize that there’s a lot of people out there that need help. It could be your friends. It could be your neighbors.”

Thanks to Papay and the people of Palmerton, that need can be met for about two months, Brader estimated.

“I just want to make sure the community knows how grateful we are for Clare (Papay) and everybody else who’s pitched in and really, really done this community proud,” Brader said.

“I’m proud to be part of this community,” she added.