Help Keep Preston's Legacy Alive on May 3

by Julie Cordingley  *

If one small boy can make a difference, why not each of us?

If you live anywhere near Boyertown, it is safe to say you know of Preston’s Pantry. What may immediately come to mind is a picture of a smiling, tow headed little boy grinning into the camera…feeling he did something good when at 8 years old, he collected food for his third grade “passion project.” That picture is bittersweet because we all know what comes next - that terrible day when, in 2019, he and his expectant mom, Pamela, were swept away in a flash flood and perished. It makes that grinning Preston all the more poignant. What a wonderful little boy.

We have to thank his mom, Pamela - because by all accounts Preston absorbed his empathetic nature from her. She was always encouraging him to do good, helping him go around to collect those generous donations, and then driving everything over to Boyertown Multi Service. Although Preston’s mom is not here to show us how she was able to instill such a loving heart in her little boy, we have Preston’s grandparents and stepfather who are doing that on her behalf; they also had an influential role in Pamela's and Preston’s lives. Many individuals and families have become honorary members of Preston’s family. That invitation is extended to you as well.

This Saturday, May 3rd, from 10 to 3PM, the 7th annual Preston Pantry and Community Day will take place at 200 west Spring Street, Boyertown. This month and day were chosen for a number of reasons. First, because it is near the end of the school year which means there are a whole lot of days in summer when food might be less abundant especially for school age children. Another reason is that the month of May is a central month. It is kind of a midpoint between holiday season, when there is a great outpouring of holiday giving at the end of the year compared to the often over looked summer months, when it is a crucial time to restock food bank shelves. And finally, it is the weekend before Mother’s Day – a very fitting time to remember and honor a most inspiring Boyertown mom, Pamela.

Diana Hamer, Director of Case Management, is the chairperson for this event. She explains, “It is our food pantry’s biggest and ultimately the most important event of the year, but also its most up-lifting.” Community Day is a free family event but Hamer encourages attendees to come with a nonperishable food product as a donation for Preston’s Pantry. Activities for the day include a moon bounce, face painting, food trucks, petting zoo, axe throwing, rock painting, balloon animals, and of course DJ music. 

*   It has been over forty years since a chemist job in Malvern lured Julie Cordingley away from her up state, New York home. She is a proud resident of Gilbertsville! Besides working in industry, she has been a stay-at-home mom, and has just recently retired from Phoenixville Area School District as a (wait for it!) chemistry teacher. It has been a life-long dream to be a writer. She figures she can work at that craft while also traveling with her husband in their drivable RV…a retirement present to herself!

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