(Ridgely, MD. March 2012) – As part of the Lions International “Relieving Hunger “ campaign, the Ridgely Lions Club conducted a food drive during the months of January, February and March to support three local food pantries in Ridgely. The Lions collected non-perishable items and sold citrus fruit with the proceeds shared with the food pantries at the Fish Locker Ministries, Ridgely United Methodist Church, and Saint Martin’s Ministries. On March 29th, Lion Dave Davis presented groceries and a check to each food pantry with a promise of continued support from the Lions Club.
L to R – Lion Dave Davis presenting donations to Jean Austin, COO for St. Martin’s Ministries, Cathy Grable with Ridgely UMC, Sister Patricia Gamgort, Exc. Director for St. Martin’s Ministries, Linda Bollinger and Rev. Woodworth with the Fish Locker Ministries.
The “Relieving the Hunger” Campaign, a Lions global initiative that focuses on hunger and malnutrition, took place during the months of January through March . Lions everywhere share a common belief, “community is what we make it.” During the “Relieving the Hunger” campaign, Lions are fighting hunger in their communities, while raising awareness of this global problem. Nearly one billion people do not get enough food to be healthy. Recently, financial and economic crises have pushed more people into hunger, and many hunger relief organizations are finding it difficult to keep up with demand. “Organizing this project gives us a chance to help families in our community who don’t have enough to eat or can’t afford to buy nutritious food,” said King Lion Ed Miller, President, Ridgely Lions. King Lion reminds everyone that hunger in our communities continues year round and that local food banks and pantries are always in need of more donations. To assist these local food pantries, contact Linda Bollinger at the Fish Locker Ministries (302) 727-9112 or Cathy Grable at Ridgely UMC (410) 634-2527 and Jean Austin at Saint Martin’s Ministries (410) 634-1397.
The Ridgely Lions Club would like to thank Chris Horvath at Tri-Me Warehouse in Ridgely and Lion Parke Hahn, Branch Manager at Centreville National Bank in Hillsboro for participating as collection sites for the food drive.
In addition to the club’s “Relieving the Hunger” service event, the club conducts a variety of projects, including vision screenings, hearing aid and eye glass donations, pre-school vision screenings, little league sponsorships, the Ridgely Christmas lights and parade, a peace poster contest, the Annual Ridgely Strawberry Festival as well as donations to numerous local charities and non profits.
Lions clubs are groups of men and women who identify needs within the community and work together to fulfill those needs. For more information or to get involved with the Ridgely Lions Club, please contact Lion John Voshell at 410-634-2214 or jevoshell [at] comcast [dot] net or go to www.ridgelylions.org. Lions Clubs International is the world’s largest service club organization with 1.35 million members in approximately 46,000 clubs in 206 countries and geographical areas around the world. Since 1917, Lions clubs have aided the blind and visually impaired and made a strong commitment to sight preservation and community service throughout the world. For more information about Lions Clubs International, visit the Web site at www.lionsclubs.org.
Dennis Keim and Steve O’Brey arrived with a van full of produce and dairy items to add to our holiday emergency food packages. Lettuce, spinach, peppers, squash, tomatoes, and potatoes and apples and onions appeared, enough for a feast. The walk-in refrigerator in less than hour went from empty to full. Many families received special foods, both the produce and the interesting coconut milk based eggnog to brighten their holiday meals.
