Shepherdstown Shares Food Pantry director Cari Simon, left, welcomes her replacement, Janelle Hoover, to the role, at Simon’s retirement party in Kome Thai & Sushi Bistro on Tuesday. Tabitha Johnston

SHEPHERDSTOWN — Shepherdstown Shares Food Pantry Director Cari Simon stepped down from her position this week, after founding the initiative in 2020.

Simon, a retired teacher, came to the role as a volunteer. She then officially left retirement last year, when the job became a paid, full-time position, due to the amount of work being the food pantry’s director required.

Her decision to retire for the second time, was a recent decision.

“It’s health related,” Simon said, noting this was the main reason for her decision. “I’ve been doing this for a long time. It’s time to take a step back.

“I’ve been doing this for almost four-and-a-half years, ever since we started the food pantry,” Simon said. “I’m ready to take a step back and relax and enjoy my retirement.”

Under Simon, the food pantry was established and opened in Trinity Episcopal Church’s chapel. The food pantry is unique from others in the area, as it places a heavy emphasis on providing healthy food options for clients, stocking fresh produce, eggs, milk and meat alongside the typical food pantry offerings of carb-rich and canned foods. A number of the fresh items in the Shepherdstown Shares Food Pantry are also locally produced, allowing the food pantry to benefit the community in a second way, by ensuring that a portion of the financial donations from local residents are returned back into the community.

Simon also has a made a point to ensure that all of the food pantry clients, whether they be experiencing unemployment or under-employment, receive any hygiene products they may need. Providing these essentials to clients helps them to preserve their dignity.

“We need to treat human beings like human beings,” Simon said. “Every person is entitled to being fed, just like they are entitled to having healthcare.”

She noted that the work of the Shepherdstown Shares Food Pantry is more important than ever in the community.

“Some of our clients are hard-working people. They just can’t make it work, to feed everybody, with their income,” Simon said, mentioning the public is often misinformed on the kinds of people who rely on the assistance provided by food pantries and other charitable organizations. Shepherdstown Shares Food Pantry volunteer Janelle Hoover has been selected as Simon’s replacement. Simon said she was pleased that the Shepherdstown Shares board selected Hoover for the position, and she would continue to support the 501(c)(3) organization in whatever ways that she can.

“I will probably be involved in the background in the future,” Simon said. “For now, of course, I’m a consultant to Janelle, because there’s a lot happening!”