Fruitland Kindness Box to find new owner, continue serving community

FRUITLAND, Md. – The Kindness Box, a beloved staple of Salisbury and Fruitland, is changing hands but still keeping its mission of giving free food to those who need it.

The box had become a place for those who were food insecure to find canned and pantry stable goods, as well as a place to drop off and donate them to those in need.

Deborah Ritterson is now stepping away from running the kindness box as she moves across the country to be with family. She says she started the project nearly 3 years ago to help those in the community going hungry. Ritterson says she might be moving, but the box and the mission behind it are sticking around.

She says some friends local to the area will be taking it over once she leaves, keeping the impact local. Ritterson says the box had a greater impact on the community than she had ever imagined.

“I expected it would be popular, but then covid hit and I never expected it to take off the way it has and it does my heart good,” she said, adding ” I wanted to do something to honor my dad and I think he would be really proud of this, it’s bittersweet but it will continue to play a pivotal role in this community in Fruitland and Salisbury,” she said.

Ritterson tells us she can’t reveal who will be taking it over quite yet, but she wants everyone to know that it is in good hands and thanks all those in the community including Shop Local Delmarva, that helped her build the kindness box into the symbol of hope and help it has become.