Philippi CVB, BC Chamber Of Commerce Welcome Bless This Food, Inc. To Area

Friends, supporters, and members of Bless This Food, Inc. food pantry gathered May 1 to cut a ribbon at the official ribbon cutting ceremony in front of the entrance to the new business. As co-owners Nina and Jack Daugherty snip the ribbon in the above picture, Tina Ivester and Cheryl Golden, officers in the nonprofit, are joined by members of the Philippi Convention & Visitors Bureau, the Barbour County Chamber of Commerce, the Barbour County Commission, and the Union Community in celebrating the grand opening.

As part of the grand opening of Bless This Food, Inc., Food Pantry, the Philippi Convention & Visitors Bureau welcomed the new business to the Philippi business district. The welcome was accompanied by what has become the traditional welcome gift, a framed print of the Philippi Covered Bridge. Shown at the presentation of the print are Wendy Clark, CVB Board member and owner of The Yarn Basket; Tammy Stemple, secretary of the Board, representing Philippi Main Street on the Board; Ed Larry, CVB Board member, representing the BC Historical Museum and the BC Chamber of Commerce on the Board; Karen Larry, president of the CVB Board, representing Adaland Mansion on the Board; Nina and Jack Daugherty, co-owners of Bless This Food, Inc.; Cheryl Golden, vice president of the food pantry; Tina Ivester, treasurer of the food pantry.

The Philippi Convention and Visitors Bureau and the Barbour County Chamber of Commerce recently welcomed Bless This Food, Inc. to the area. The new food pantry, located at 15227 Barbour County Highway in Philippi, officially opened its doors to the public on Wednesday, May 1 with a ribbon cutting ceremony and a public reception.

Bless This Food, Inc. secures food from the Mountaineer Food Bank in Gassaway and accepts donations from the public. Currently the pantry is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. If assistance is needed when the pantry is not open, people may contact the pantry via its Facebook page, by phone 910-800-1071, or by email at nina.daugherty@yahoo.com.

The new food pantry is managed by co-owners Nina and Jack Daugherty along with officers of the organization: Vice President Cheryl Golden and Treasurer Tina Ivester.

Nina Daugherty noted her love of helping people prompted her to generate support for the new food pantry. That support has already brought in food products that fill the shelves in the pantry and has resulted in a large group of volunteers who will be helping with the work of the pantry, many of the volunteers being members of the Union Community where Nina and her husband Jack live.

During the recent CVB and Chamber of Commerce to Bless This Food, Inc. visit, members of both organizations participated in the official ribbon cutting ceremony and also in the presentation of the CVB’s framed print of the Philippi Covered Bridge. The print is presented to businesses new to the Philippi area as a way of saying welcome and as a show of appreciation for the business choosing the Philippi area for its site. The Philippi Convention & Visitors Bureau began this type of visit in 2021 and has to date visited 26 businesses new to the Philippi business district.

The Philippi Convention & Visitors Bureau’s primary purpose, according to the WV law and the Philippi City Charter under which it operates, is to enhance the economic climate of Philippi by developing and promoting the tourist resources and convention attractions. The Board’s visits to local businesses have been undertaken to emphasize the importance of the businesses to the economic climate of Philippi.