posted on Wednesday, June 19, 2019
Haul Out Hunger donated 34 cases of pork loins to the community of Hampton this year. That's 408 loins that will yield approximately 7,344 servings of pork for area families in-need.
Donations were made at the Franklin County Community Food Pantry, Ministerio Manos Al Arado, St. Patrick's Catholic Church and United Methodist Church (Community Meals in Hampton).
"We’ve had families break down in tears after receiving these pork loins,” said Pastor Jose Cruz of Hampton. “They were just so grateful for a donation that came at a very difficult time in their life when they were struggling to put food on the table for their family.”
For Pastor Jose and the 15 long-standing volunteers he works with at Ministerio Manos al Arado, it’s important for them to make a positive impact in their community and for the families that live there.
“We are proud to be a part of the community of Hampton and try to do as much as possible for the families here in need of help,” said Pastor Jose. “In addition to food boxes, we teach nutrition and health tips to encourage families to live healthy lives. These pork loins are great for those lessons because they’re high in protein, which is especially important for developing children.”
After unloading 180 pork loins with Pastor Jose, we made the short trip to Springer Auction to meet up with Dave and Betty Springer who coordinate the Franklin Community Food Pantry.
“Half of our volunteers have been helping for 10-20 years and the other half have been here for 5-10 years,” explained Betty. “They just love giving back, helping people and also enjoy the friendships they’ve made with the other volunteers over the years.”
Currently, the Franklin Community Food Pantry serves 499 individuals a month, or approximately 151 families.
“Some people can simply not afford the meat with already tight budgets,” said Betty. “It is a great source of protein and our clients just love these loins. They are very thankful for the meat!”
Our third and final stop in the town of Hampton took us to St. Patrick’s Catholic Church to visit with our longtime friend, Jann Bowersox, and deliver 60 loins.
“We feel we are making a positive difference in the lives of families we serve,” said Jann. “It’s very rewarding to see families get back on their feet and then return to the pantry, but instead of leaving with food they make a donation for other families who fell on hard times.”
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