Salem – It’s an eye-opening statistic, but one in eight Virginians battles food insecurity.
In Southwest and Central Virginia, there is no shortage of people with open arms and giving hearts. The holiday cheer is spreading throughout the region as more people are lending a hand with donations and their time.
With the amount of donations received volunteers are in full swing at Feeding Southwest Virginia doing quality checks before the food is distributed to the 260 agencies the non-profit partners with.
“More people are stepping up than ever for this holiday and food insecurity rates are increasing. Our food supply is up by 10 percent, but food is going out the door faster than ever. Our food agencies are requesting more and more food than we have seen,” Emma O’Neill, Director of Communications and Marketing at Feeding Southwest Virginia said.
Director of Volunteer Services at Feeding Southwest Virginia Randy Holden said there has been a 30% increase in people requesting food than what they have seen throughout the year, but donations are up as well.
“We’ve had a number of huge donations, turkey donations from Kroger’s, Smithville is providing us with hams, we’re getting those hams and turkeys out to people that are in need, people that are requesting those items. That’s been allowing us to provide families, hungry families, those hams and those turkeys this holiday season,” Holden said.
If you need assistance with meals this holiday season, the non-profit has a “Find food” tab that shows the different agencies near you, where you can grab a meal. Click here to see locations.