CUMBERLAND, ME (WMTW/CNN) - A picture of a police sergeant in Maine cooking up a meal is getting a lot of attention on social media.
The sergeant found himself in the position to fix a meal for an elderly veteran who was nearly out of food.
Even in the town of Cumberland, which is considered one of the most affluent communities in all of Maine, the need is there.
They've turned a two-bay garage at the Town Hall into a food pantry.
Every month, 75 families come into the food pantry to get their food and Sgt. Thomas Burgess actually got the food there to prepare for an elderly gentleman.
He said the photo on Facebook of him in the kitchen is really just a snapshot of a bigger problem.
The problem of food insecurity among Maine's elderly.
"I had to do a welfare check on someone and based on that welfare check, I was able to find out some things that needed to be known. This person needed some help," Sgt. Burgess said.
The person was an 80-year-old veteran, living alone, a Cumberland resident since 1940.
When Sgt. Burgess noticed he had very little food in the house, he headed straight to the local food pantry.
He shopped, returned to the man's home, cooked up a meal and got the ball rolling so the elderly gentleman could receive other services.
Burgess called it good old-fashioned community policing.
He appreciated all the positive feedback he's received, but he said he was just doing his job.
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