It comes as no surprise to most that buying a cheeseburger at a local fast food joint is much cheaper than purchasing a small salad or veggie burger. Generally, you can get a small cheeseburger for around $1. Having less than optimal choices, our underprivileged have little options which potentially cause long lasting health problems. An organization, Fields to Families, is working hard to change this. The nonprofits goals aim to provide freshly harvested food from local farms directly to those who need it most and can least afford to buy it.
Their Mission
Fields to Families empowers those in the Lowcountry who are food insecure by providing fresh produce from local farms and gardens.
How It Works
The process works in three steps. First, farmers will contact Fields to Families if and when they have a harvest that they cant collect or use. Then, volunteers are sent out to pick the vegetables, getting down and dirty in the fields to get the unwanted produce. Finally, the prized fruits and vegetables are distributed to food banks and other organizations who give food to the hungry. Churches, soup kitchens, and Meals on Wheels are some of the nonprofits who go so far as to prepare entire meals using the bounty collected by Fields to Families volunteers.
What Can You Do To Help
Donate Your Time – Become a volunteer with Fields to Families and become an integral piece in collecting unwanted produce that may help a food insecure family get nutritional meals. Its a good team-building experience as well by bonding like minded people together in community service.
Donate Food – If you are a farmer of any proportion, by having a huge farm or having a backyard garden, and have extra produce that you cannot use, please consider donating the excess to Farms to Families. You dont even have to pick the produce yourself! Theyll dispatch a team to collect the bounty themselves.
Donate Money – Offer a monetary donation if youd like to help this organization fulfill its goals. You may do so online here or by attending one of their fundraisers. Their largest fundraiser is typically held in January at Bowens Island Restaurant. This year, over 140 attendees dove into all you can eat oysters, chili, hot dogs, and enjoyed tunes played by local musician Thomas Champagne. Tickets for this event usually run $20-$25 and help to secure hundreds of dollars in silent auctions that go directly toward benefiting the hungry.
Community Partners
Lowcountry Food Bank
https://lowcountryfoodbank.org/
Crisis Ministries
East Cooper Meals On Wheels
Neighborhood House
