For seven months, the Kingston Food Bank has had a home from which to help local people who need food. That’s thanks to a grant from the Pam Foster and Liz Austin Fund, a donor-advised fund managed by the Seattle Foundation.

The Kingston Food Bank opened its doors at 26102 Illinois Ave., a two-story house next to the Sheriff’s Department, on Nov. 25, in time to prepare and distribute 60 Thanksgiving dinner boxes.

Food Bank director Barb Fulton said in an earlier interview that the grant is “an answer to our prayers,” and it’s the largest gift ever made to the food bank. Foster and Austin hope the grant spurs other giving that can permanently end the food bank’s odyssey.

The grant covered the food bank’s rent for one year. The food bank is now raising money to ensure it can stay at 26102 Illinois Ave. beyond this November, a mere five months away. On the last weekend of every month, the food bank hosts a yard sale to help raise rent money for another year. It’s going to take more than a yard sale to raise money for a year’s worth of rent and utilities; it’s going to take community giving.

It’s a worthy investment.

The food bank, founded by Fulton’s parents in 1952, meets the needs of approximately 50 families a week. The food bank also provides school supplies to local students in September, and has clothing for people in need.

Kingston Food Bank clients live closer to the downtown core and are mostly older, homeless or pedestrian. “Ninety percent of our clients walk,” Bill Fulton said. In contrast, ShareNet serves a larger area — Kingston, Eglon, Hansville, Indianola, Little Boston, Port Gamble, and some border addresses in Poulsbo and Suquamish.

Kingston Food Bank supporters include The Pizza Factory, which donates ice; The Grub Hut, which donates fruits and vegetables; and The Borrowed Kitchen, which donates bread.

The organization had to move out of its longtime home in December 2012 after the county determined the building — which is owned by the county — did not meet codes. The food bank was given a place to stay until April 2013 by Windermere Real Estate, then moved into Fulton’s 22-foot motor home and went mobile. In October 2013, Fulton moved the food bank into her husband’s small-engine repair shop at 29630 Rash Road, off Parcells Road, three miles from downtown, out of reach for many of the food bank’s clients. Then, the grant from Foster and Austin came to the rescue.

Help keep a great thing going; give to the Kingston Food Bank. The hours are noon to 3 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays. The phone numbers are 297-4861 and 297-7100.