During the week of Thanksgiving, Manna Food Pantries will have a fully staffed drop-off site to collect food and monetary donations at Cordova Mall at 9th Avenue and Airport Boulevard. Manna will be on site: Nov. 24, 5 a.m. – 7 p.m., Nov. 25, 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. and Nov. 26, 7 a.m. – noon.
“We are still recovering from the April flood that devastated our facility and destroyed all our food. Fill the Mayflower is always an important drive for our organization because it’s the single largest food drive of the year,” said DeDe Flounlacker, Manna executive director. “This year it’s more important than ever because of our limited food resources and with so many families in need. A simple $5 donation will provide food for a day for someone in need and $30 will provide a week’s worth of food to the hungry. A donation of peanut butter equals providing protein for a week for one of our clients and is often the only source of protein someone might have.”
Donating for this event is easy. Volunteers and staff will be on hand to take food and monetary donations. Those who would like to donate can just pull up to the Mayflower truck and volunteers will take care of the rest. Every donation counts, no matter how big or small.
While all non-perishable food donations will be accepted, the most needed items are peanut butter (16 oz.), canned chicken and tuna, canned fruit, canned tomatoes, dry beans (1 lb. bag), and breakfast items (cereal, oatmeal and grits).
Manna is a direct service provider to the hungry and helped more than 32,000 people this year with food. An Emergency Food Assistance Program, Manna provides assistance a maximum of four times a year through a network of four pantries in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties. In addition to pantry service, Manna also offers a Senior Hunger Program in partnership with Westminster Village and collaborates with the Santa Rosa County School District on the Backpack4Teens program. A local grassroots organization, Manna offers all services free of charge to those in need.
For more information, please contact Manna at 432-2053 or email manna@mannafoodpantries.org<mailto:manna@mannafoodpantries.org>.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Help Manna Fill the Mayflower for Thanksgiving