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Fred Meyer gives to local shelter Store donates sleeping bags A Medford homeless shelter got a boost this week from Medford's two Fred Meyer stores. The St. Vincent dePaul Society's shelter will receive new sleeping bags, bedsheets, towels and more from the company after a volunteer submitted a wish list of badly needed supplies. The shelter on North Pacific Highway originally asked Fred Meyer to put up a coupon display allowing customers to decide if they'd like to make a donation. Instead, the store officials decided to donate whatever the agency needs the most. "This was something we could do immediately," said Mary Loftin, Fred Meyer community affairs manager. Mary Ellen Rahe, a volunteer at St. Vincent dePaul, said needs at the shelter have increased over the past year by 26 percent, and with the holidays coming up shelter supplies will be in even greater demand. "This was an absolute gift from God," she said. The shelter does not usually ask businesses for contributions, Rahe said. Most of the shelter's income comes from regular contributors. St. Vincent dePaul volunteers provide over 2,500 meals every month along with shelter for 20 people. Rahe estimates the shelter gives aid to about 350 families monthly. Loftin said the donation proves that Fred Meyer's recent buyout will not keep the stores from continuing to care about the community. "We're still here, we're still a neighbor," she said. "We'll still be supportive." The donations include 12 sleeping bags, 20 blankets and bedsheets, 20 towel sets, two dozen flashlights with batteries and a case of candles. The two Medford Fred Meyer stores will each give half of the supplies. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1998, Medford, Oregon USA