Clipping for charity

Debbie Moore has gone through countless pairs of scissors in her more than 20 years of coupon-clipping.

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As a stay-at-home mom of two, Moore says bargain shopping has become a way of life.

"It's like this bug bites you and you really get into it," she said.

Moore began clipping coupons and shopping sales when her husband, Wayne, decided to go back to school, leaving her as the sole income earner in the family.

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"I was the only one working," she said. "It was hard going from two incomes to one."

By the time the couple's first child was born, they were again a two-income household. But Moore continued clipping coupons.

"It's kind of in your blood by then," she said.

After the couple's second child was born, Moore decided to become a stay-at-home mom and coupon-clipping once again became a necessity. She joined coupon clubs, where members exchange coupons, and subscribed to refunding magazines.

Currently a member of two coupon clubs, one sponsored by Wesley United Methodist Church and another which meets at Warren Baptist Church, Moore still looks for deals, but is finding ways to share her bounty.

"I soon found out that I had so much food that I didn't need," said Moore. "I mean, I had pounds and pounds of pasta. I began asking, 'How much can I get for free for people who need it?"'

Debbie Moore belongs to two coupon clubs, in which

members can exchange coupons to get ones they want.

Photo by Jim Blaylock

Over the years, Moore donated food to many food banks and is now working on a way to provide another outlet for the area's hungry. With Marta Klaren, Moore will coordinate a food pantry at Asbury United Methodist Church on Troupe Street in Augusta.

"It's a small church," Moore said, "but the whole congregation is so excited about it. They are motivated and just want to feed people."

Randy Monk, pastor at Asbury, said the church had been looking for a way to meet the needs of the church and the community.

"We conducted a survey in January and we found that there are a lot of hungry people in the community around our church," he said.

A building on the church property will house the food pantry, which the church is aptly calling its Heart to Hope ministry.

"From our heart flows hope that we can give to others," said Monk, adding that the church's women's circle already collects and donates food to Augusta Urban Ministries. "We really feel like it's a blessing to be able to help others."

Moore wants to help the hungry know that soon there will be one more place for them to go for food. The pantry will be open on the first and third Tuesdays of each month from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Moore will do much of the shopping for the Asbury pantry, and other food will be purchased from Golden Harvest Food Bank. Monetary and food donations are welcomed and there will be volunteer opportunities.

"I really feel like God is kind of guiding me," added Moore, who attends Trinity on the Hill United Methodist Church in Augusta. "I always feel like he's with me when I'm pushing that shopping cart."