'Food is medicine': Sentara Obici Hospital opens community food locker in Suffolk

This week, Sentara Obici Hospital in Suffolk, Virginia, and the Suffolk Christian Fellowship Center cut the ribbon on a weatherproof, refrigerated food locker outside the hospital’s emergency department entrance. The locker is the third community food locker that Sentara has installed in the region with non-profit community partners to serve the needs of hospital patients and agency clients who are food insecure.

Community members can access fresh, healthy food from the lockers around the clock with a digital code provided by the agency or the hospital. It is intended for patients being discharged from the hospital who have no food in their home, or for local residents who are clients of the food pantry and need an after-hours option to pick up food on their way home from work.

“This is what can happen when a healthcare organization and a community partner come together with a shared mission and purpose,” said Tricia Christoffer, director of ambulatory administration for the hospital. “This initiative offers a practical, dignified way for us to provide healthy food to those who need it.”

The Suffolk Christian Fellowship Center has a 25-year history of community service in the area and operates a food pantry on East Washington Street in Suffolk. The organization will rotate the food in the lockers once a week to ensure freshness and safety.

A ribbon cutting ceremony for a new community food locker was held outside Sentara Obici Hospital's emergency department entrance in Suffolk, Virginia, on Tuesday, June 2, 2026.

“Food is medicine, and this is a response to a right-now need,” said Lorna Slaughter, co-founder and chief operations officer of the organization.

“Families have to make hard choices when it comes to food. Seniors on fixed incomes have to make hard choices,” Slaughter added. “This initiative offers people dignity, access and better health.”

Sentara opened its first community food locker in 2025 at Sentara CarePlex Hospital in Hampton in partnership with the Virginia Peninsula Food Bank. 

And earlier this year, the second was installed outside of Sentara Williamsburg Regional Medical Center with Williamsburg House of Mercy and Williamsburg Health Foundation as community partners.

“Health begins at home around the dinner table,” said Ursala Bowe, community engagement consultant with Sentara Obici Hospital’s cancer program.

“This is a compassionate service we can offer to bridge gaps and reduce barriers to healthy food,” she added. “Small acts can bring big impact.”

For more information about our community food lockers, visit these websites for each location: Hampton, Williamsburg, and Suffolk.