Golden Harvest steps up to feed 13 CSRA counties during summer
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Hunger in our area is rising, and to help meet the need, Golden Harvest Food Bank is expanding its Summer Harvest Feeding Program.
The food bank has already rolled out its Summer Sprouts Program, but with the number of people they’re feeding, numbers are showing that more needs to be done.
With school out, many families in our area lose access to the two daily meals their children received during the school year.
For some, those meals are already being offered to them at a reduced price, but when they can’t already afford those meals, families now have to worry about how to feed their children three meals.
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The harvest program bridges that gap by providing 35-pound boxes of food filled with staples like fresh produce and meats to Georgia families with children ages 17 and under.
“We are packing about 12,000 of these summer harvest food program boxes. They include easy-to-open, easy-to-cook meals for students, easy-to-cook meals for parents. Alongside them, we are handing out fresh produce as well,” said Priscilla Elliot, public affairs specialist, Golden Harvest Food Bank.
Elliot says that they usually help roughly five counties with food during the summer. This summer, however, that number is now expanding to cover 13 counties, nearly tripling their efforts.
Some counties only need 168 boxes, and others need as many as 400.
Elliot tells us that the expansion couldn’t have come at a better time. Earlier this month, Golden Harvest shared with us a new report showing hunger on the rise across our area.
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Leaders say these brown boxes are more than a carrier for the food, they’re a lifeline for some families.
“A lot of the families that we talk to, they’re just so grateful and thankful that we’ve come out there to bring the food to them. And for some people, they might see it as just another brown box full of food. But for some of these families, it’s a lifeline, something to help them through the summer,” said Tiffany Matthews, Golden Harvest child and senior program specialist.
“These are feeding hungry people, and you’re making a difference in people’s lives. You may not see it, but you are making a difference. We take Jesus’ command to care for our neighbor very seriously. And that’s what we’re doing here, caring for our neighbor and feeding our hungry neighbor, and the response from our church is phenomenal. We get 15 to 20 people every couple weeks,” said Glenn Palmer, Holy Comforter Episcopal Church.
Each family will receive two boxes over the summer, one in June and the other in July. The first round of boxes goes out on Tuesday.
If you aren’t sure when you’re set to receive your box, make sure you check in with your child’s school.
If you are interested in volunteering for the food bank, visit https://goldenharvest.org/volunteer/.
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