ST. GEORGE — Southern Utahns are invited to join the rest of the state to help fill the Utah Food Bank.
This Saturday, March 18, faith-based congregations, organizations and residents throughout Utah will collaborate with Utah Food Bank for the second statewide Feed Utah food drive, after a hiatus in 2022 due to COVID-19, according to a news release.
Residents across the state will have received door hangers during the days leading up to the food drive, and Utah Food Bank asks the public to help by placing a bag of non-perishable food outside their front door by 9 a.m. Saturday for pickup.
Volunteers will collect donated food and deliver it to Utah Food Bank and its participating partner agencies across the state, the news release said.
Utah Food Bank Southern Distribution Center is located at 4416 S. River Road in St. George, phone number (435) 656-9122. Drop-off sites across the state include Utah Food Bank’s Salt Lake and St. George warehouses, any Macey’s Grocery locations, participating pantry locations and other community sites.
This effort is the result of a partnership between Utah Food Bank and its partner agencies, Macey’s Grocery, JustServe and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“It is rewarding to see so many partners working alongside us to fight hunger statewide,” said Ginette Bott, Utah Food Bank president and CEO said in a news release. “We are still distributing record-setting amounts of food as the need for assistance remains high thanks to rising food costs and other inflationary pressures. Your support is needed now just as much as during the height of the pandemic.”
These donations will help provide food to the estimated 289,000 Utahns, and 1 in 9 Utah kids, who are unsure where their next meal will come from.
Donated food should be commercially packaged (non-glass), non-perishable and nutritious (ideally low-sodium and low-sugar items). Most-needed food items include beef stew, chili, peanut butter, boxed meals, canned meats and canned fruits and vegetables.
Residents can participate in a variety of ways, including leaving a bag of non-perishable food donations by their door, donating funds using the QR code on the door hangers that have been distributed or volunteering to help receive food donations, according to the news release.
To learn more about Feed Utah, including how to sign up to volunteer, donate online or find your nearest food drop-off location, visit the Utah Food Bank website.
“Food insecurity for many Utahns is a daily reality,” said Bonnie H. Cordon, Young Women general president with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, in the news release. ” Our collective efforts to care for those in need and share our abundance, no matter how meager the offering, makes us better and knits our hearts together in greater unity.”
Founded in 1904, Utah Food Bank has operated under various names but remains true to its mission of fighting hunger statewide by providing food to a statewide network of 230 emergency food pantries and agencies, the news release said.
Last fiscal year, Utah Food Bank distributed 67.3 million pounds of food and goods, the equivalent of approximately 56.1 million meals, to families and individuals in need across the state.
For more information about Utah Food Bank, visit the Utah Food Bank website, Facebook or Twitter.