Wayland Town Crier 3/7/11: 'Pierce's Pantry' aims to provide food for all. Pierce Keegan of Wayland was just a sixth-grader when he was diagnosed with celiac disease four years ago. Celiac disease is an autoimmune condition in which the body’s response to certain grain proteins found in wheat, barley, rye and contaminated oats and all of their derivatives causes damage to the lining of the small intestine. The toxic substances are collectively called glutens and, ultimately, consuming them impairs the digestion of food and absorption of nutrients, often leading to malnutrition, bone disease and other conditions throughout the body. All of which – at the very least – makes going for pizza with your pals a little difficult. The solution is gluten-free food, which is not only hard to find, but expensive. Suddenly one day, while Keegan was around the halfway point of the 20-mile Walk for Hunger, he began to wonder how people of limited means could find gluten-free products they could afford.