by Kaelyn Spickler
On November 30 the City of Roanoke Redevelopment and Housing Authority concluded its canned food drive and began filling 1,300 reusable bags with the 6,500 non-perishable food donations.
Each bag was filled with a meal’s worth of items including pasta and sauce or a jar of peanut butter, cans of veggies, fruit, beans, and/or soup, rice or mashed potatoes, cereal, ingredients for baking, and more.
The community came together in incredible ways to help RRHA exceed its goal of 6,000 donations. Key partners include Food Lion, UnitedHealthCare, Pilgrim Baptist Church, First Baptist Church of Roanoke, Rosalind Hills Baptist Church, all local branches of the YMCA, all Roanoke City Public Libraries, Forest Park Church, Roanoke Co+Op, Valley Care LLC, Fresh Market, Family Service of the Roanoke Valley, United Way, Brown Edwards, Roanoke College, Kid’s Soar, Sam Rasoul’s Roanoke office, and RRHA employees. These organizations and businesses donated food, gift cards, and/or were donation spots for the larger Roanoke area. Other organizations, including Sweet Donkey Coffee and Runabout Sports Roanoke helped promote the food drive.
RRHA began handing out bags on December 7, taking on two neighborhoods a day. While doing so, RRHA spread awareness of the five-cent plastic bag tax taking effect at the start of the year and encouraged families to start bringing the reusable bags with them to the grocery store.
The families expressed gratitude and excitement, and it was evident how much of an impact the Roanoke community made on many of their lives.
