October is Hunger Awareness Month and as they did last year, Good Samaritan Ministries is hosting a county-wide food drive to collect specific items for the Christmas food boxes they pack in November and distribute in December.
“We held the food drive last year throughout the month of October and it was such a tremendous success that we are so excited to do it again,” said Leesa Stephens, Executive Director of GSM. “Anytime the community comes together for a single purpose, great things happen.”
Just like last year, Stephens said they are asking certain groups in the community to collect specific food items for the Christmas food boxes.
“We love this very specific food drive because it shows that everyone collecting a little, adds up to something really big,” Stephens said. “Our goal this year is to have all of the shelf-stable items for our Christmas boxes donated by our Brown County community.”
The Hunger Awareness Month County-Wide Food Drive will continue throughout October and the collection breakdown is as follows:
- Elementary and Intermediate School Campuses – Green beans
- Middle and High School Campuses – Cornbread mix and canned fruit
- Hospital and Medical Communities – Cake mix and frosting
- 4-H Clubs, Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts – Canned sweet potatoes
- Other Clubs and Organizations – Canned pumpkin
- Business communities – Stuffing mix
- Colleges and Universities – Pie filling
- Churches – Chicken broth and sweet potatoes
“The holidays will be here before we know it and the Christmas boxes are just another way we can share the love of Christ through a meal to our families who come to the food pantry,” said Stephens. “The boxes are filled with most of the ingredients needed to prepare a traditional Christmas dinner.”
Stephens said it will take the entire community working together to meet their goal.
“The Christmas boxes are distributed in addition to regular grocery staples which means they come with an additional price tag at the end of the year,” Stephens said. “With the generosity of our local community, we know we can have those shelf stable ingredients donated without the additional cost of having to order them from outside sources. We can truly be a community in unity as we work together to extend our reach to our friends and neighbors in need.”
For more information or questions about what a business, club or group is suggested to collect, please call Misty Bowers at 643-2273 or 325-203-2489 to be assigned a food item.