Thanksgiving Food Drive for the Howard County Food Bank
Thanksgiving Food Drive for the Howard County Food Bank
November 6 - 17
Once again, Christ Church will be supporting the Community Action Council of Howard County (CAC) by conducting a food drive in the weeks before Thanksgiving. This year the holiday falls on November 24th. The drive began this past Sunday, November 6th, and will end on Thursday, November 17th, so please help as you can for time is limited. All of the items will then be delivered to CAC’s Howard County Food Bank on Friday morning, November 18th.
In 2022, the Food Bank expects to feed about 1,000 people for Thanksgiving and another 1,000 for Christmas by distributing "Holiday Meal Kits." You can support this effort by bringing non-perishable food items that include the usual sides: boxed mashed potatoes, stuffing mix, gravy, cranberry sauce, olives, pickles, and cans of fruit and vegetables (low-sodium is preferred).
Because families may find their pantries are bare overall this time of year, please consider adding items such as tuna and pasta to the Food Bank’s non-seasonal wish list.
If you're at the church, you can place goods on the Thanksgiving-decorated table in the Narthex. If you wish to remain outdoors, you can put them in the yellow bin marked “Thanksgiving Food Drive" located on the Old Brick breezeway. Given the potential for seasonally cold weather, however, it’s best if items in glass jars go inside with the Narthex collection. NOTE: The food bank is not collecting pies, other desserts, or rolls because of perishability.
After the onset of the pandemic, the Outreach Commission ended its previous practice of collecting turkeys during its annual drive. Instead, Christ Church this year will again help fund the protein component of holiday meal kits. Outreach members recently approved a significant donation to the CAC for the Food Bank’s purchase of alternatives to whole turkeys.
Certain families - including those who are homebound - will receive partial or whole chicken roasters, vegetarian choices, and options with the proper protein for those on dialysis.
The holiday funds for CAC are the latest approved by the Outreach Commission in 2022. Earlier, we sent a monetary donation for general purposes such as energy and housing assistance and early childhood education. In response, CAC honors Christ Church among its “Village of Supporters” in various ways, including recognition of partners during its annual Holland Awards event. Vestry and Outreach member Diane Phillips Laguerre represented Christ Church at the event. Please contact her to hear what she learned about CAC (email outreach@christchurchcolumbia.org) and many thanks to all who made possible these monetary donations through parishioners’ contributions to Christ Church.