CHARLOTTE — Approximately 1,400 volunteers came together at St. Matthew Church in Charlotte July 9 to pack 336,312 meals for the hungry, part of the parish’s annual World Hunger Drive.
The meal packing event was a collaboration with the local non-profit Servants With a Heart, which also worked with Elevation Church. Over the weekend, the two Charlotte churches packed a total of 1 million meals, which will be distributed to Haiti as well as to local organizations.
The packaged meals are made up of rice, soy, dehydrated vegetables and a flavoring mix which includes 21 essential vitamins and minerals. The food stores easily, has a shelf life of five years and transports easily. The meals are distributed through feeding programs in the schools and villages of developing countries, and given out quickly in crisis situations.
—Photo provided by St. Matthew Church and Servants With a Heart
HUNTERSVILLE — Members of St. Mark Church raised more than $25,000 and packaged 84,000 meals by 900-plus volunteers during the parish’s annual partnership with Stop Hunger Now July 16. The Raleigh-based Stop Hunger Now (www.stophungernow.org) operates meal-packaging programs at 20 cities in the U.S. and elsewhere, providing more than 225 million meals for people in 73 countries since its founding in 1998.
This year, it expects to package 45 million meals and ship more than $9 million in donated aid, mainly vitamins and medical supplies.
St. Mark’s meal-packing event included children, families, friends, Christ the King High School students and parents, seniors, clergy and staff.
Each meal feeds six people, so that means the parish packed meals that will feed half a million hungry people throughout the world. Stop Hunger Now will distribute these meals through feeding programs operated by partner organizations in developing countries that promote education, encourage children to attend school, improve students’ health and nutrition, address gender inequalities, stimulate economic growth, fight child labor, and are part of the movement to address global issues.
— Photo by Amy Burger