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When we asked our community advisory committee where Geronimo Power’s first $10,000 monthly donation should go in Cass County, North Dakota, the answer came quickly: the Rural Cass County Emergency Food Pantry.
The committee is made up of local residents who know the community best, and they are the reason our giving program looks the way it does. It was their idea to make a donation every month, with the committee choosing a different local organization or initiative each time. For the first, they pointed to a need that touches families across the county year-round: access to food.
In June, Geronimo Power made that donation to the pantry, a 100 percent volunteer-run organization based in Casselton that has served rural Cass County since 1992. In 2025, the pantry served 969 households, supported 2,448 people, and distributed 72,209 pounds of food. Families can visit once a month for groceries, toiletries, personal care items, and household essentials, offered in a compassionate and confidential way. The pantry also sponsors Backpack programs in the Page, Central Cass, Northern Cass, Maple Valley, and Mapleton school districts, and serves communities including Arthur, Buffalo, Mapleton, Page, and Hunter.
Committee members told us that keeping shelves stocked, especially during leaner months, is an ongoing community priority. Because local pantries can make every dollar go further, donations can have a meaningful impact for families and neighbors in need. Beyond regular pantry visits, the organization also provides Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas baskets, which reached more than 300 households across the three holidays in 2025.
Strong communities are built when neighbors look out for one another, and the Rural Cass County Emergency Food Pantry reflects that spirit. It is operated entirely by volunteers and sustained through donations, grants, local food drives, and its partnership with Great Plains Food Bank. We are grateful to our advisory committee for pointing us here first, and we are looking forward to seeing where they take us next.
Learn more about the Rural Cass County Emergency Food Pantry: Home | Rural Cass Pantry
