Volunteers and staff members with the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri will partner with Cumulus Radio, Walmart and Schnucks for 12 hours Tuesday to collect food and funds for hungry Callawegians just in time for Thanksgiving.
"It's all about raising awareness for the one in five people who live in this community and throughout our service region and are food insecure, meaning they may not know where there next meal will come from next week, or tomorrow or maybe even today," Lindsay Lopez, executive director for the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri, said during a Nov. 20 interview on a radio show program with Paul Pepper.
For the 19th annual Partnership Against Hunger food drive, volunteers and staff members from the Food Bank for Central and Northeast Missouri will be collecting donations near the entrance of Schnucks in Jefferson City and Columbia and Walmart stores in Fulton, Jefferson City, Columbia and Moberly. Volunteers will distribute flyers to shoppers entering the stores and will help accept non-perishable food and fund donations at each store exit.
Although some people may prefer the tangible aspect of selecting the food items they donate, giving a monetary donation may help alleviate hunger for more people long term. According to the Food Bank, a $1 donation equates to about 12.5 meals or 15 pounds of food for local hungry Missourians in the organization's service region; $10 can fill a food barrel.
Several Cumulus stations will be broadcasting the annual drive live from several collection sites. Q 106.1, KFRU and Soft Rock 101.5 KPLA will be stationed outside to promote the event and spread awareness about food insecurity to listeners.
"The awareness is important," Lopez said on Pepper's show. "We think that these food drives are a great way to educate their children and grandchildren about the importance of giving back; they can really have a hands-on way to do that."
In 2014, the Food Bank provided more than 1.27 million pounds of food at no cost to Callaway County hunger relief efforts.
On average, the Food Bank serves about 114,000 people each month throughout the 32 counties in its service region, Lopez said.
This year, volunteers and employees hope to collect 1,000 pounds of food and $1,000, which would amount to an additional 15,000 pounds of food to fight local hunger.
As the 12-hour food and fund drive approaches, volunteers are still needed to fill specific time slots. The Food Bank encourages those interested in volunteering to sign up by visiting sharefoodbringhope.org, clicking on "events" and filling out the volunteer form.