In 2020, the YMCA of Greenville identified a need to provide food to families experiencing food insecurity in Greenville. Fast forward more than three years, and the organization continues to identify a growing need.
Danielle here. I spent time with the YMCA (and its awesome volunteers) stuffing bags of food and delivering them to motels in our city. They need your help to keep the program going, so here’s how you can support them and Try This.
What we tried:
I met up with the volunteers at First Baptist Church to pack thousands of dollars worth of food to deliver. While half of the volunteers focused on bags to feed families, the other half assembled bags of snacks for students at local schools.
Volunteers divide up the snack bags and split up drop-off duties around the city while a handful of other volunteers load into the “Y on the Fly” van to deliver the food to local motels.
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
The volunteers make this operation a well-oiled machine. | Photos by GVLtoday
What not to miss:
You can’t miss the passion of the volunteers who create a fast-paced assembly line to get food organized and ready for distribution. It’s obvious the team has fun while serving, and they come back week after week to help.
As a group, we sang happy birthday to one of the volunteers who opted to spend his birthday loading the van.
What we’re still talking about:
Organizers told me they often have names of families added to their list during the drop-off process. While one family may move out of the motel and find a permanent housing solution and no longer needs the bag of food, two or three may have started their temporary stay. Read: The need continues to grow.
How you can experience this:
In order to keep the program funded, the YMCA relies on grants and a portion of the YMCA of Greenville’s Annual Campaign. Your donations can also support the growing program — here’s how:
- A $25 donation feeds a family for a week
- $50 feeds and provides a week of baby essentials for a family
- $100 provides one month of food for a family
- $500 feeds an entire motel for a week
You can also volunteer every Thursday from 9:30-11 a.m. at First Baptist Church before helping with delivery around the area. If you aren’t available during that time, check out other ways to volunteer with the YMCA.
Things to know if you go:
- Experience: Volunteering with the YMCA’s food distribution program
- Price: Donations encouraged
- Website: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0d4ca4a92da1f4c34-emergency1#/
- Address: First Baptist Church, 847 Cleveland St.
- Hours: 9:30-11 a.m. Thursday
- Social: Instagram | Facebook | Twitter
