Feed More volunteers hand out food at a drive-through distribution event. The organization has seen a 30% increase in need recently. (Photo courtesy Feed More)
As food banks across the region prepare for the first holiday season of the COVID era, operators anticipate record levels of demand for food assistance.
“When this all started, we made a few adjustments to make sure that we’re able to meet that increased need, and we’re just planning on keeping our new status quo so that we can continue to meet the need for as long as it’s there,” says Christy Dalton, community events manager for Feed More.
The organization, which distributes meals to nearly 300 partner agencies across Central Virginia, has seen about a 30% increase in need over recent months, Dalton says.
The Chesterfield Food Bank, one of Feed More’s local partner agencies, currently serves more than 30,000 county residents per month. As Thanksgiving approaches, food bank CEO and Director Kim Hill expects demand to grow by another 20% to 30%, she says.
“Our services have tripled since COVID started, and we think [that’s] just going to continue to increase,” Hill says. “Thanksgiving is one day out of the year. They’re still going to need everything — the normal food distributions, right along with holiday food.”
Hanover-based nonprofit The Giving Heart will offer free Thanksgiving dinners to those in need through its annual Community Thanksgiving Feast. The event, held last year at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, will shift to a “to-go” format to allow minimal physical contact between event-goers and volunteers. The nonprofit has distributed free holiday meals, clothing and other essentials through the annual Thanksgiving Day event since 2005.
Area residents are encouraged to support local food assistance programs or volunteer their time at food banks ahead of the busy holiday season. For more information about ways to get involved, visit feedmore.org or chesterfieldfoodbank.org.
“This could be one of the [loneliest] times for so many people, especially our seniors,” Hill says. “We want to be that hand up, we want people to know that there’s people that care [as] these months are getting ready to happen. We want to be there for them.”
