Fourth grader sets up mini food pantry to help those in need

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    Muscatine, IA (WQAD) — Inside a Muscatine laundromat, there’s not just washers and dryers. Right at the door, there’s Peyton’s Pantry where anyone can take as much food as they need.

“I have always wanted to start a pantry like this,” Peyton Story says.

Peyton is the mind and heart behind all of this. It all started when he couldn’t celebrate his 10th birthday with a party at the end of November.

“He loves getting mail, so I just put on my Facebook ‘Hey, if anyone wants to send him a card because we can’t do this, that’d be awesome,'” Tabbi Story, Peyton’s mom, says.

Peyton dedicated a chunk of that birthday money, nearly $100, to get his pantry started.

“I was so proud of him,” Tabbi says.

“It feels amazing that people get to eat when they originally couldn’t, and the fact they couldn’t before, that just makes me sad,” Peyton says.

“It was a man that said it was him and his girlfriend,” Tabbii says. “He was like ‘Well this is the only way I’ve been able to eat the last few nights.’ He wasn’t greedy about it, just took one can for him and one for his girlfriend.”

Now, Peyton is setting his sights high, hoping to expand to grocery stores like Hy-Vee.

“I say no matter your age or the means, I say do what you want to do,” Peyton says. “One kid can change the world.”

There is a GoFundMe set up for Peyton’s Pantry for anyone to donate to their grocery funds to restock the shelves. This weekend, they’re taking a trip to the store to replenish the pantry with the money they’ve raised so far. They’re also always accepting food donations.

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