5 Year Anniversary of Murphy's Giving Market

Upper Darby, PA, March 14, 2025 --(PR.com)-- Five years ago when the world shut down at the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, Desireé Murphy Morrissey opened up her backyard. She had connections to Philabundance, the largest food bank in the region, and Philabundance had no food distribution site in Upper Darby. Many of Murphy Morrissey’s neighbors worked hourly jobs and had been furloughed with no pay.

With support from her family, Murphy Morrissey started distributing food from her home.

Tables were set up in the backyard – one for baked goods, one for vegetables, and so on. Neighbors started stopping by to pick up much-needed groceries. Word got out. More volunteers came, more people lined up outside the house for food. Within weeks, the line went around the block. People began sending donations. Murphy Morrissey gave out food, hygiene products, clothes, and books.

By the fall of 2020, Murphy Morrissey had formed an official nonprofit with a 501(c)(3) designation. Even though people were returning to work, there was still enormous need. By the summer of 2021, with support from Philabundance, Murphy Morrissey and her team of volunteers had moved into a rented building on West Chester Pike. First they were distributing food once a week, then twice a week, then three times a week.

On March 17, 2025, Murphy’s Giving Market will celebrate its 5-year anniversary. It is now a full-fledged community resource center offering fresh groceries, clothes, and hygiene items for free to anyone in the community who is in need. It is open on Mondays for seniors and on Tuesdays and alternate Saturdays for all others. In between distributions, social workers come to pick up food. A mental health office offers low-cost services. An advocacy organization supports immigrants in the community. A women’s group holds weekly meetings. An English language class teaches conversational English. A caseworker helps residents access area services. Visiting nurses offer vaccines and preventative health screenings. On holidays, community members facing food insecurity receive food bags and toys.

Murphy’s Giving Market heads into its fifth year just as the USDA announced a $1 billion cut to the Local Food Purchase Assistance program that provides food to schools and food banks. “Our community needs us and we are not going anywhere,” the food pantry posted on its Facebook page. Plans are underway for a fundraiser on April 25 to celebrate Murphy’s Giving Market’s five-year anniversary and secure funds for continued operations. Details are available at www.murphysgivingmarket.org.

Murphy’s Giving Market is located at 7408 West Chester Pike in Upper Darby. Information about its programs can be found on its website and Facebook page.