NEIGHBORHOOD FOOD PROJECT
GREEN BAGS ARE BACK Neighborhood food pickups rebound after the pandemic slowed them a bit By Damian Mann for the Mail Tribune
N
eighborhood food drives to feed the poor are in full swing again after the pandemic put a damper on operations. Every two months — the second Saturday of every even-numbered month — residents of Southern Oregon put nonperishable food items in a green tote bag and set them on their front porch. The food is picked up by neighborhood volunteers and distributed to local food pantries, which get the items to families.
The food drive typically collects 75,000 pounds of food. In December, the Medford drive hauled in a record 42,290 pounds from 2,800 donors. For 2021, Medford, which collects for Central Point and Jacksonville, hauled in a record 220,000 pounds of food distributed through 14 pantry locations. “I’m amazed that people continue to press in and give and give,” said Marcy Bliss, director of the Medford Food Project. She said the need for food has increased over the past few years because of the fires and the pandemic.
“Throughout the pandemic people have wanted to give. It shows how great the community has been in wanting to help.” Courtney Williams, president of the local Neighborhood Food Project, the umbrella organization for the various food projects
PHOTO BY DENISE BARATTA
Hundreds of bags of donations from Neighborhood Food Project volunteers are unloaded at ACCESS in Medford. 8
|
Our Valley
0508_A_08_OV____.indd 8
4/23/2022 12:10:11 PM
