CHARLOTTE, N.C. — WCNC Charlotte teamed up once again with Boy Scouts of America to help fight hunger in the community and make a difference through the Scouting For Food drive.
Scouts with the Mecklenburg County Council, Central NC Council and Palmetto Council went door-to-door on Saturday, Feb. 4 to collect much-needed donations for various food pantries.
Scouts collected donations in Mecklenburg, York, Lancaster, Anson, Union, Cabarrus, Rowan and Stanly counties.
In Lancaster, South Carolina, scouts collected donations for Hope in Lancaster. They have the Healthy Choice Pantry, which serves clients who visit HOPE for food or financial assistance. Food Assistance is designed to free up financial resources for the client. In Lancaster County, it is estimated over 19,600 residents are food insecure, which means they lack regular and adequate access to food.
Scouts left door tags at homes on Saturday, Jan. 28 and returned on Saturday, Feb. 4 to collect the donations.
Donations were also collected at:
- Subaru South Boulevard (9201 South Blvd, Charlotte, NC 28273)
- Subaru Concord (853 Concord Pkwy S, Concord, NC 28027)
No one should have to worry about where their next meal will come from. To make an online monetary donation, text the word SCOUT4FOOD to 44321 to support Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays.
Scouting for Food
All of the donations collected by the Mecklenburg County Council benefit Loaves & Fishes. Scouting For Food is their single largest food drive of the year.
Over the past year, Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays has seen a significant increase in the number of Mecklenburg County neighbors facing food insecurity.
Surging costs in housing, fuel, utilities and especially food, have stretched already tight budgets to their breaking point.
In 2022:
- 106,547 neighbors in Mecklenburg Co. received groceries through our network of food pantries and grocery home delivery program
- An increase of 38% year over year! (106,547 vs. 77,140 in 2021)
- Almost half were children and seniors
- 65,835 neighbors received fresh produce through Pop Up Food Shares (a 33% increase over 2021)
- Each weekday, hundreds of volunteers delivered 86,468 prepared meals directly to the door of homebound seniors through our Meals on Wheels program
The dramatic increase in food costs not only impacted struggling families but also dramatically increased the amount Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays is spending on food. Food drive donations have been lower this past year at the same time that the need has risen. To keep up with the increased demand, Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays is having to purchase record amounts of food. This year, Scouting for Food brought in much-needed food items for the food insecure in the community. Funds donated are used to purchase perishable items such as fresh meat, and produce and dairy such as milk, cheese, yogurt and eggs.
Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays provides groceries, meals and hope through a network of food pantries, grocery home delivery and is the primary Meals on Wheels program for Mecklenburg County.
If a scout did not leave a door hanger on your door, you can still donate. There are several drop-off locations throughout each county.
Mecklenburg County
You can drop off food donations at any of the locations listed below on Saturday, Feb. 4, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday, Feb. 5, from 12:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. (at certain locations indicated below) or at the Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays warehouse Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. through 4:30 p.m. located at 648 Griffith Rd.
Those who prefer to make a financial donation directly to Loaves & Fishes/Friendship Trays can donate online or text 44321 and enter the code: Scout4Food. Each dollar donated equals 4 lbs of food!
Scouts were on hand to collect donations at these locations on Feb. 4:
- Ada Jenkins Center - 212 Gamble St., Davidson (Saturday, Feb. 4 only drop-off site)
- Arboretum Shopping Center – Providence Road and Highway 51 (across from the Harris Teeter), Charlotte
- Good Shepherd Church – 13110 Moss Rd, Charlotte (Saturday, Feb. 4 only drop-off site)
- Huntersville United Methodist Church – 14005 Stumptown Rd., Huntersville
- Philadelphia Presbyterian Church – 11501 Bain School Rd., Mint Hill (Saturday, Feb. 4 only drop-off site)
- Sardis Presbyterian Church, 6100 Sardis Road, Charlotte (Saturday, Feb. 4 only drop-off site)
- Sharon Presbyterian Church – 5201 Sharon Rd., Charlotte
- South Mecklenburg Presbyterian Church - 8601 Bryant Farms Rd, Charlotte (Saturday, Feb. 4 only drop-off site)
- Town Center Plaza – 8600 University City Blvd., Charlotte
Collection sites in South Carolina include:
- Belair United Methodist Church serving Indian Land
- Pilgrims' Inn serving Rock Hill
- Fort Mill Care Center serving Fort Mill
- PATH serving York
- Clover Area Assistance Center serving Clover and Lake Wylie
- Hope of Rock Hill serving Rock Hill
- The Lakeshore Pantry serving Rock Hill
- HOPE in Lancaster serving Lancaster County
- Catawba Terrace Care Center serving Rock Hill
- Upstate Family Resource Center serving Boiling Springs
- GRASP serving Great Falls
- Spartanburg Soup Kitchen serving Spartanburg
