The Little Free Pantries outside Emmaus United Church of Christ in Vienna have gotten battered over the years, but despite repeated acts of vandalism, they’re still standing.
Though cleaning up and repairing the damage can be a hassle, sometimes temporarily taking the boxes out of commission, the church remains undeterred in its commitment to making donated food and hygiene products available to passersby in need.
“It’s our gospel,” Rev. Dr. Kristen McBrayer, senior minister at Emmaus, said, referring to the Bible verse that blesses those who feed the hungry and welcome strangers. “It’s the gospel that Jesus calls us to, and nowhere in scripture did Jesus ever say, ‘Oh, don’t worry, it’ll be easy, it’ll be no problem.’ So, anytime you’re doing the things that really matter in the world, and it’s difficult, you just keep going.”
The destruction faced by the pantries has taken different forms since they were installed early in the COVID-19 pandemic, from items getting scattered to the doors being broken or removed.
Most recently, the Vienna Police Department responded to the church at 900 Maple Avenue East on the morning of May 10 for a property destruction report.
“The investigation revealed an unknown individual damaged two community food pantry cabinets and removed a doorbell camera from the building during the overnight hours,” the department said in its weekly summary for May 8-14. “Officers collected surveillance footage and documented the damage.”
One door of the food pantry was torn off again just this past Monday (May 18), McBrayer told FFXnow. The damage was quickly repaired, and the door reattached.
According to McBrayer, it’s not clear whether the same person is responsible for the vandalism, or if different people have been involved over the past five-plus years. In at least one instance, the culprit wasn’t a person at all: a couple weeks ago, the church’s security camera caught a raccoon getting into the food pantry, which hadn’t been fully latched, and leaving a “royal mess” on the sidewalk.
However, Emmaus leaders don’t believe the acts are being committed out of malice toward the church or its unabashedly progressive political stances. On any given day, drivers might see a message expressing support for immigrants or the LGBTQ community, for example, on its sign along Maple Avenue.
Instead, based on one individual who was identified with the Vienna police’s assistance, at least some of the incidents appear caused by people who are perhaps experiencing a moment of frustration or crisis.
“It appears that it’s from a place of instability and the realities of life on the streets, whether it’s frustration that the pantry is empty or frustration that what they want isn’t there,” McBrayer said. “… There have been many instances of vandalism, but the ones that we are just really aware of are people who are perpetually unhoused.”
How church, police are responding
Vienna Police has received three calls for property damage involving the Emmaus pantries over the past year: two for the May 10 and May 18 incidents, and one on May 27, 2025.
The individual behind the most recent incidents “has been identified,” PFC Irving Rodriguez, a public information officer for the VPD, confirmed.
“The Vienna Police Department is continuing to work with church leadership to address the issue through increased patrol presence and continued monitoring of the area,” he told FFXnow.
Though cases involving major physical damage are reported to the police, McBrayer says Emmaus isn’t interested in pressing criminal charges, which could lead to jail time and fines that a person experiencing homelessness might not be able to pay, exacerbating their circumstances.
“But we want [the destruction] to stop,” McBrayer said. “We want that person and other people to be able to get food, and if the pantry is damaged, then we can’t serve the community.”
One option the church might consider is requesting that police trespass individuals from its property, though that would also prevent them from accessing the pantries.
Emmaus has taken steps to try to prevent further damage, reinforcing the pantry doors with stronger hinges loaded with springs to ensure they close and a more robust latch to reduce the likelihood of animals breaking in.
To minimize debris winding up in the street or on other properties after some neighbors raised concerns about trash, the pantries were recently moved from their original spot at the corner of Maple Avenue and Westbriar Drive to a median in the church parking lot.
“That mess was dumped [by the raccoon] on the sidewalk in front of the church, where I could get a broom and sweep it up and take care of the mess in a way that makes it more appealing for our neighbors, and that’s definitely a goal,” McBrayer said. “We want to be good neighbors to all of our neighbors.”
Rodriguez says the VPD encourages residents, businesses and community organizations to report any “suspicious activity or incidents” directly to the department, rather than through social media, “so officers can respond and assess situations in real time.”
In addition to calling 911 for any emergencies, community members can reach the VPD through its non-emergency number at 703-255-6366.
“We understand community pantry programs are an important resource for many residents, and incidents impacting shared community spaces are concerning to the community,” Rodriguez said. “Patrol officers have increased visibility in the area and will continue monitoring the location as part of regular patrol operations.”
Need for Little Free Pantries rising
The first Little Free Pantry was installed in September 2020 by the Emmaus Youth Group, which received a $500 grant for the project from the Potomac Association that supports United Churches of Christ across the D.C. region.
With mission trips and other youth programs getting canceled due to Covid, the group wanted to use those unspent funds to give back to the community, and Little Free Pantries offered a way to address surging food insecurity without requiring people to go indoors or mingle with crowds.
Inspired by the mini food pantry, a group of James Madison High School students offered to build another pantry in 2022 for menstrual products. The “Period Pantry” has since evolved into a more wide-ranging hygiene pantry stocked with everything from soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and shampoo to first aid supplies, face masks and socks.
While there was a dip in the use of the pantries after the initial months of the pandemic, the need for assistance has soared since roughly the beginning of 2026, spurred by rising local unemployment and inflated prices, McBrayer says.
Sometimes, she sees the food pantry get emptied and restocked by vigilant donors as many as eight times in a single day. Yesterday, both pantries were full when the reverend arrived at the church around 9 a.m., but by the time she spoke to FFXnow around 11:30 a.m., they had been fully cleared.
Fortunately, there has been no decline so far in people willing to drop off food and other items to fill the pantries. Many local residents will stop by to restock the boxes on a regular basis, and there’s even a man in Front Royal who read about the Period Pantry in the Washington Post and now ships enough pads and tampons over once a quarter to keep the pantry almost constantly supplied.
“We’re just hugely grateful for so many people from the community not connected with our church, not connected to Emmaus, who are deeply invested in providing food for our neighbors,” McBrayer said. “That’s very special.”
