Share
Second Harvest Food Bank of Metrolina received 52,000 pounds of Thanksgiving fixings this week from Family Dollar stores.
The donation included hundreds of cans of cranberry sauce, green beans, pineapple, broth and soup, along with boxed potatoes and mandarin oranges.
Nearly 80 employees from Family Dollar pitched in Wednesday to help pack food bags, which will be paired with turkeys handed out to 5,000 low-income families via the pantries.
The donation was coordinated in part to mark the 50th anniversary of the Family Dollar chain of stores, which is based in Matthews.
"The need has been astronomical for this year," said Kay Carter, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank. "I think it made Family Dollar's gift even more special that their 50th anniversary coincided with Thanksgiving."
The donation comes at a time when pantries are experiencing a 30 to 40 percent jump in requests for help over the previous year.
The food bank supplies pantries in a 19-county region of the Carolinas, where 370,000 low-income people live. Just this week, Mecklenburg's Loaves & Fishes food pantry network reported that it had a 42 percent jump in clients in the past two years, and faced a threat of running low on food in coming months.
Second Harvest Food Bank offers donors three ways to give, including food, money and volunteer hours.
For details on how to donate or start your own food drive, visit www.secondharvestmetrolina.org or call 704-376-1785.
