The Prairieland United Way kicked off its Live United Food Drive campaign this week.
The campaign, which encourages community members to donate food for kids, runs now through the end of May. Prairieland United Way executive director Karen Walker says they want to do what they can to make sure our kids have food this summer.
“Once they are out of school, we know that food can sometimes be an issue for families, and we want to do our part to help fill those gaps. This is our third year of holding the food drive, and it is our way of asking the community to help us fill that need. We will collect food that is donated and then distribute it at our Summerfest event.”
Walker says it’s no secret that food insecurity has been rapidly increasing in the Prairieland United Way service area, and that only increases for children once they no longer have access to school lunches.
“We know that it has been more top of mind with both the Jacksonville Area Food Center and the Salvation Army’s Food Pantry asking for help from the community, and the community has responded. We are so appreciative of the generosity of our community. So we know that we are asking a lot, but we know that people are doing their part and helping where they can. So we hope that continues and will give out whatever we can get.”
Some of the most needed items for the food drive include Juice, Gatorade, canned chicken, fruit, Jell-O or pudding cups, canned soups, ramen noodles, canned pasta, peanut butter, jelly, macaroni & cheese cups, and oatmeal.
Walker says they are requesting items like peanut butter to be in individual or smaller portions that are easier for children to handle on their own.
The food will be distributed at the Summerfest community event at Community Park on June 11th. She says they will also need volunteers for the event. “We will be collecting through Memorial Day Weekend and then split them up into bags and have them available at our Prairieland United Way table at Summerfest. Any volunteers are welcome, we would love to have help with distribution. Just reach out to me at the United Way Office about volunteering, and we will find a place for you.”
Food donations can be dropped off at local banks, including Bank of Springfield, CNB Bank & Trust, Farmers State Bank & Trust Company, First National Bank of Arenzville, Heartland Bank & Trust Company, and Petefish, Skiles and Co. Bank.
The Live Untied Food Drive is happening now until May 31st. Anyone interested in volunteering can call Karen Walker at 217-245-4557.