SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – A Sioux Falls family is again using a 12-foot-tall model skeleton in its front yard to collect and share food, toiletries and other needed items.
Skelly Bob is in the front yard at the home of Kristine and JP Muko. The skeleton has been in their yard for a while, but this is the second year the couple has used him to support people who struggle to afford everyday items.
People can both donate and take items as needed. Kristine Muko said the project began last year.
Last year, I know the economy was getting rough. A lot of people had hard times and we wanted to use the holiday season as an excuse to get it going,” she said. “We definitely weren’t expecting it to go as well as it did. Those bins stayed stocked all month long. Anytime that they started to kind of dwindle and get pretty sparse, we would just put the call out and we had people show up any time of day. We had people from out of town send Venmo-ing us money so we could go grocery shopping and replenish them ourselves.”
The food pantry will be out for all of November. Muko said that if the weather is bad, the totes will be on the front porch. People are still welcome to walk up and choose what they would like.
“We definitely had it in our heads that we would do it year after year,” said Muko. “When I realized how quickly November was approaching, we had a conversation of, you know, like, can we afford to keep it going this year? But my husband was very adamant, like, just, you know, we’ll just contribute what we can. If we help just a couple people, it’s better than helping nobody.”
Skelly Bob has become a fixture in Sioux Falls over the years. The owners said the pantry is one way they can give back to the community “one skeleton at a time.”
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