More Than 6,000 Pounds Of Food Donated Through Feed The Ridge
by James Coulter
Approximately 6,075 pounds of groceries were donated to The Mission of Winter Haven through the seventh annual Feed The Ridge food drive on Sunday. Hosted by Winter Haven Christian Church, the food drive spent two hours collecting cans, boxes, and packets donated by their congregation and other members of the local community.
The church also purchased groceries using money donated to them during the drive. All of the food, both donated and purchased, were then loaded onto a trailer and delivered to The Mission of Winter Haven, a local non-profit ministry dedicated to providing services to people in need.
Feed The Ridge wrote on their Facebook page: “We filled up a trailer twice and a pick-up truck with groceries. It may have been a different format again this year, but our community showed up to support this event. Thank you to all who donated, volunteered, and prayed for the success of Feed the Ridge. Continue to pray for the ministry of The Mission and all who will be blessed by these donations.”
For the past seven years, Winter Haven Christian Church has sponsored the annual food drive through Feed The Ridge. In previous years, they have collected up to 8,000 pounds in food donations. While this year’s collection was not as big, the church received a substantial amount of food donations, even in light of the current pandemic, explained Heather Reuter, Founder and Coordinator of Feed the Ridge.
“I am again humbled by our amazing community showing up to help donate and serve,” she wrote via Facebook Messenger. “It was such an amazing day to serve together as we filled container after container with groceries for The Mission of Winter Haven.”
Most of their success, both this year and in previous years, has been due to word of mouth. This year’s event was promoted well, and it even managed to receive media attention, explained church member Larry Ferguson.
“Last year was a little off due to the pandemic, but this year was far better,” he said. “We have been with The Mission for a number of years. Just to be able to feed the homeless, and take care of the people and their needs, it has been a gift. Only through the grace of God have they been able to give what needs to be done…We look forward to continuing and to furthering feeding the ridge, putting food where it needs to go.”
To learn more about Feed The Ridge and their future fundraisers, visit their Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/FeedtheRidge
