This week, hundreds of volunteers are working to help meet those food needs and provide Thanksgiving meals to the thousands who need a helping hand. and still others are working to kick off toy drives and the annual Secret Santa program, to bring holiday gifts to children and others this holiday season.
“More people are standing in line and food is harder to get,” said Lee Bickley, community relations manager for Santa Rosa’s Redwood Empire Food Bank. “But we’re not turning anyone away.”
In Sonoma County, the Redwood Empire Food Bank is feeding about 70,000 people every month — up from 60,000 a month during the last fiscal year, a food bank manager said.
David Goodman, executive director of the Redwood Empire Food Bank, testified before the Hunger Caucus of the U.S. House of Representatives last week about the successful practices of the Redwood Food Bank and brought a simple message: many seniors “worked hard, protected our country, raised families and made our country strong,” but still need help.
Representatives of charities and nonprofits asked Congress to offer tax benefits to help organizations provide services for growing numbers of people in need. more than one in seven households didn’t have enough food in 2008 — the greatest number since the Agriculture Department began tracking food security in 1995. They told Congress that growing lines at food pantries show the need is growing.
The numbers could foretell a difficult season for charities that rely on donations to provide food and services for people in need.
On Saturday, volunteers were filling grocery bags in anticipation of Wednesday’s annual Thanksgiving meal and food-giveaway at the Sonoma County Fairgrounds.
The Redwood Gospel Mission is hosting the event the day before Thanksgiving from 11 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Volunteers will serve sit-down Thanksgiving meals to all who wish to attend. There will also be free haircuts, family portraits, clothes for those in need, dental checkups and other services, all of which are free.
Volunteers will also pass out more than 5,000 turkeys and food boxes to families who registered in advance to receive food for the holiday.
Donations of money or turkeys can be brought to the front desk at the mission’s men’s facility at 101 Sixth St., Santa Rosa. Call Alice Lowe for information at 578-1830, ext. 14.
“I love calls from professional haircutters who want to share their gift to help cut hair,” Lowe said.
The mission also needs volunteers for its Christmas banquet and toy giveaway on Dec. 23. People interested in volunteering can register starting Nov. 30 on the mission’s Web site at srmission.org.
Families who would like to receive services or sign up for Christmas gifts can visit the Salvation Army between 1 and 4 p.m. at 93 Stony Circle starting Dec. 4.
Also appearing around the county this week are bins for donations of toys and food.
“We were surprised by the turnout we got last year,” said Anthony Westergaard, an engineer with the Santa Rosa Fire Department. “People came through.”
The fire department’s Toys for Kids program collects donated toys for local charities to distribute during the holidays.
“This year, it’ll probably be the same thing. They’ll step up again,” said Westergaard, who organizes teams of firefighters to station a toy bin every weekday in Santa Rosa Plaza for the program.
The fire department will launch its annual toy drive with a pancake breakfast and raffle from 8 to 11 a.m. Dec. 6 at the Santa Rosa Veterans Memorial Hall.
People can donate toys at any Santa Rosa fire station or at the toy bin in Santa Rosa Plaza from Dec. 7 until Dec. 22. People can also give cash donations. this year, the department will use any extra funds to buy supplies for elementary school students.
The Volunteer Center of Sonoma County started receiving requests for assistance earlier than previous years, said Marty Patton-Volz, a project coordinator with the center.
“We started seeing calls right at the beginning of September to see if they can get assistance at Christmas-time,” Patton-Volz said.
The center runs a Secret Santa program to fulfill specific gift requests for children and adults. Gift-givers can find gift requests on red, heart-shaped ornaments at participating businesses. They can also listen to KZST radio for host Brent Farris to read letters to Santa on-air from families in need and call in to offer to fulfill a family’s request.
Last year the Secret Santa program provided gifts for 13,000 children and area residents.
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