Those in need of assistance of putting food on the table have benefited from the One Harvest Food Ministry since the program began in 2010.
Santa Rosa County currently has two distribution locations at the First United Methodist Church of Milton and the Navarre United Methodist Church, where residents can retrieve their purchases from the One Harvest website. The ministry offers a discounted price on food items on a monthly basis.
Nancy Model, the site director for the First United Methodist Church of Milton, said residents travel across the county − even from neighboring north Escambia County − in order to receive a monthly food box order.
“We usually have between 40-80 boxes are given out,” she said.
Formerly known as the ‘Angel Food’ program, One Harvest offers residents the opportunity to order various meal box options. The menu’s are updated on a monthly basis and special meal boxes are available for the holidays, including Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.
Each meal box option includes meats, vegetables, potatoes pastas and desserts−for families and individuals. The program even offers a meal box for vegetarians, Model said.
On a monthly basis, Model and other church volunteers will travel to the Manna Food Bank in Pensacola, where the One Harvest monthly food deliveries are distributed in the early morning hours. From there the ordered food boxes are taken to the Milton church where the volunteers distribute the boxes for customer retrieval.
The one of the major benefits of the program is helping those unable to visit a grocery store due to a disability, illness or financial status.
Model said individuals from various backgrounds utilize the program. Some even use One Harvest to provide a meal box as a gift for a friend or family member.
Although there is signs of the economy improving, Model believes there will always be a need for this kind of program.
“I think there is always need for people to find food at decent prices,” she said.
Online: For more information on the One Harvest Food Ministries, visit their website at oneharvest.com or call the main office at 478-7620.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: One Harvest food ministries offers affordable option for food