LEXINGTON, Va. – Food insecurity is a significant problem in the United States, and Rockbridge County leaders said that it’s the same in their area.
A group of ladies is working to ensure that Rockbridge County’s people can get nutritious food to eat.
“I really love to volunteer,” Sharon Littley, a volunteer, said.
Littley helps to prepare healthy food with Fairfield Presbyterian church.
“We hope they use it; we hope they eat it,” Littley said.
The group provides food weekly with fresh produce on the menu, including tomatoes, cucumbers, and fruits like bananas.
“Our goal primarily in the beginning was to make sure that people had good fresh foods,” Punker Robertson, the pastor at Fairfield Presbyterian Church, said.
Lindsey Perez is the executive director of the Rockbridge Area Relief Association and said that one in ten Rockbridge County households don’t have enough food on the table.
Perez went on to say that the pandemic increased people’s need for food.
Now, on average, the group provides food for about 500 households a month.
“We have seen variations of the amount of assistance that people need; right when the pandemic hit, we have a huge increase of people coming through,” Perez said.
It’s been over two years since the group has been operating, but something has changed – people are now allowed to shop inside of their facility for the first time.
“It feels wonderful. We want people to pick out their food,” Perez said. “We try to give people a variety of food to choose from, and when we have the option, we will look for that nutritious food.”