On Dec. 23, Mayor Martin Walsh, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, and neighbors joined the Boston Public Health Commission (BPHC) at its Healthy Baby, Health Food Pantry on River Street for a surprise announcement, the renaming of the facility as “Shirley’s Pantry” in honor of Shirley Shillingford, a longtime city employee who has run the facility for the last 15 years.

“This renaming— we just made it official, but it’s really always been Shirley’s Pantry,” said Pressley. “Thank you for laboring and love, thank you for the innumerous personal sacrifices you have made. You can’t stop being a service leader because it is in your DNA.”

Added the mayor: “Shirley Shillingford, you are amazing. The real heroes in our community are the people who come into a building like this and make sure families that walk through the doors get what they need. It’s our honor to do this, because the people that come here are the most needy that we have in our society, and I want them to know when they come in here, that the person who this food pantry is named after cares for them more than they’ll ever know.” 

The honoree was stunned by the news. “Words cannot express to everyone how grateful I am, and I never thought that anybody could keep any secret from me,” she joked.

Shillingford said she has often asked for help from elected officials, employees, and community members to help keep the pantry up and running — securing everything from new refrigerators, kitchen appliances, and food to keep those in need fed. 

“If you don’t ask, you don’t get – the Bible tells you that and I’m a firm believer,” said Shillingford through tears. “I started this pantry in 1992, and we did not have any resources. My mother and father taught me in Jamaica to appreciate and love those who don’t have. I never knew that my life was going to be carved out this way, but this is what I do. I get satisfaction out of serving. I believe everyone needs support and everyone needs help, and that is what I enjoy doing every day of my life. I am very grateful to everyone who is here.” 

The Health Commission’s Interim Deputy Director, Gerry Thomas, highlighted some of the difficulties that Shillingford has overcome to keep the food pantry open and stable. 

“Sadly, Mattapan has one of the highest rates of food insecurity in all of Boston,” he said. “The food pantry service is a vital resource for this hard-working community. Shirley is a champion in ensuring that the residents of Mattapan have equal access to nutritious food; it’s safe to say that without Shirley there would be no food pantry."

“I’ve known Shirley for decades and can recall our early days when the food pantry was housed in a small room in a municipal building basement in Hyde Park. The guarantee of the food pantry operating has not always been promised or secured,” Thomas said. “There have been challenges and ruts over the years [to secure] everything from funding, to space, to resources. Regardless of the challenges, Shirley never wavered in her commitment to the community. She has advocated for the ongoing needed support of the food pantry.”