Neighbors to the Rescue joins forces to restock food banks
03-11-2007
Neighbors to the Rescue teamed up with several community-based and faith-based groups to help restock depleted food banks in both tornado-struck areas and those still recovering from Hurricane Wilma.
Among the groups that partnered in this project were: First Baptist Church of Leesburg's Neighbors to the Rescue, Compassion Alliance of Ocala, Homeland Compassion of Palm Beach's Neighbors to the Rescue, Summit Christian School in Palm Beach youth group, Belleview Church of Christ, the employees of Munroe Regional Medical Center in Ocala, First Assembly of God Church in DeLand, First Baptist Church of Paisley, St. Vincent DePaul of Eustis, Friendship House and I-HOPE of Immokalee and the Lake Mack Community Relief Effort.
A semi-trailer of basic foods and kitchen essentials donated by Church of Christ were distributed to food banks in DeLand, Paisley, Lake Mack, Leesburg, Lady Lake and Immokalee by volunteers from across the state working in teams.
The food was delivered by Munroe Regional Medical Center employees and Neighbors to the Rescue volunteers in Central Florida to a storage unit donated by a First Baptist Church of Leesburg parishioner, which serves as the central distribution site.
Food was then convoyed to I-HOPE in Immokalee, which distributed it to service agencies in the town who are helping the poor, disabled and elderly as they continue to recover from Hurricane Wilma of 2005. Compassion Alliance provided the truck and driver, and matched the donation with several more tons of frozen turkeys, hams, prime rib and other high-quality foods.
Volunteers in Immokalee arrived at I-HOPE with pick-up trucks to take the groceries to senior centers and other service agencies that provide help to some of the poorest people in Florida. Immokalee has recently suffered a community set-back with a serious arson fire that killed six people; the people of the community were grateful for the food assistance as they deal with the grief over the deaths and the uncertain situation involving tragic burn injuries still suffered by four others.
Homeland Compassion brought three trucks from Palm Beach to convoy the remaining food to First Baptist Church of Paisley, Community Relief Effort of Lake Mack and First Assembly of God in DeLand. St. Vincent DePaul of Eustis helped coordinate the effort.