Nearly 20 Town & Country and Country Mart stores asked customers to make a donation for hunger relief during the holiday season. The result was $6,650 raised for Ozarks Food Harvest, a regional food bank serving 250 food pantries and soup kitchens in 28 Missouri counties.
The Nov. 15–Dec. 31 campaign was part of Ozarks Food Harvest’s 14th annual “Check Out Hunger” fundraiser in which nearly 100 grocery stores took part in at the end of 2012.
Ozarks Food Harvest provides six meals for every dollar donated, meaning the 19 Town & Country and Country Mart stores will help provide nearly 40,000 meals to those in need in 2013.
“We can’t thank Town & Country and Country Mart stores enough for coming on board for our Check Out Hunger campaign this year,” said Denise Gibson, development director at Ozarks Food Harvest. “As the regional food bank, we provide food, supplies and services to a number of nonprofit agencies in the same communities as these grocers. Not only have the stores collected donations, but they’ve helped spread awareness of the solvable issue of hunger here in our state.”
Town & Country Supermarkets, Country Mart and Richards Supermarket in the following communities participated this year: Ava, Bourbon, Cabool, Dixon, Gainesville, Hartville, Houston, Licking, Mansfield, Mountain Grove, Mountain View, Richland, Rolla, Salem, Sparta, St. James, Steelville and Willow Springs.
In 2011, Ozarks Food Harvest’s Check Out Hunger program raised more than $20,000, and the 2012 goal is $30,000. Food bank officials say not all store checks have been received, but they are on track to meet or possibly exceed their goal, in large part due to adding Town & Country and County Mart stores to the fundraiser this year.