Box of blessings: Syracuse community shares the love, one donation at a time

SYRACUSE, Utah (ABC4) — It’s been several years since Syracuse City installed their ‘Blessing Box’, where community members can donate food and other essentials. The community still regularly uses it today.

In 2022, Brooklyn Piper, Miss Syracuse 2022, and the Syracuse City government collaborated to implement a ‘Blessing Box’. A ‘Blessing Box’ is a container where community members can leave food, clothing, and other donations for those in need.

Piper told ABC4.com that she experienced food insecurity when she was younger, and her family would use local blessing boxes, in Roy and Riverdale. When she was crowned Miss Syracuse in 2022, she “wanted to leave a legacy project for Syracuse, and [knew] what better way to do that than the Blessing Box.”

After she suggested it to Syracuse city, Mayor Dave Maughan and other city council members began working on it. They chose to install the Blessing Box in front of the Syracuse Police Station at 1751 S 2000 W. This area is monitored 24/7, which helps prevent vandalism, and is highly accessible to the public.

The city does not use the Blessing Box to track specific statistics on needs within different community demographics, in an effort to protect anonymity and prevent any stigmatization of individuals in need. However, they have seen how important it has been to the community.

Within a week’s time, Piper will get pictures of the box completely empty, then completely filled up with donations, and then completely empty again, because it is being used continuously. Some community members have also reached out to the city to say the box made a difference or shared on social media forums when the box is full.

Community Response

The local Syracuse community has reportedly been very invested in the Blessing Box.

Mayor Maughan said, “I’ve seen some things, like some real thought-out, generous contributions that help people gain some stability…I give the credit to them, because they’re the ones sustaining it.”

Notably, the Blessing Box is not meant to fully sustain or feed a family, like some food banks or other donation centers are. It is meant to help with short-term needs and provide help in urgent situations or during inclement weather.

“We’re not trying to be the only resource,” Mayor Maughan said, “We’re trying to augment the other things that are available that help people out.”

For the safety of Blessing Box users, there are several guidelines that contributors are asked to follow. Those guidelines are available here and below: