//Second Harvest awarded grant to help feed local families

Second Harvest awarded grant to help feed local families

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Courtesy of WCTV:

By: Emma Wheeler | WCTV Eyewitness News 

VALDOSTA, Ga. (WCTV) — South Georgia families in need are receiving an extra boost, as Second Harvest Food Bank receives a $50,000 grant.

The Conagra Food Foundation has awarded Second Harvest of South Georgia a grant of $50,000 to help the food bank make upgrades to its inventory management system.

Quitman United Methodist Church is one of the more than 450 agencies that partner with Second Harvest. On Wednesday, volunteers were in Valdosta shopping for their Backpack Buddies program.

“We serve 30 kids in our elementary school, and each Friday they’re taking a sack of food to go in a backpack, so they have food for the weekend,” said volunteer Susan Radford.

Each full box they fill is going toward fighting hunger in South Georgia.

“There are a lot of children who don’t have food on weekends or when they get home. Their meals are at school,” Radford said. “We found out that. We’re actually putting more food in there because it’s not just that one child, it can be brothers and sisters, it may even be parents.”

Second Harvest said South Georgia is among the worst regions in the state, and Georgia ranks among worst in the nation for hunger. One in three children in South Georgia are living in a home without a stable food source.

This grant from Conagra will help the food bank update software, streamlining communication with partner agencies, making it easier to know what’s available and what’s needed.

“The more efficient our operations are and the easier it is for our agencies to interact with us, the more we can all do collectively to help fight hunger in South Georgia,” said Second Harvest Chief Marketing Officer Eliza McCall.

Next month kicks off ‘Hunger Action Month,’ an effort to raise awareness and join the fight to end hunger. ‘Make a Difference Day,’ Second Harvest’s largest volunteer day, will be held in October.

(WCTV)