At the same time that more families are turning to Second Harvest Food Bank and our partner food pantries, many of Second Harvest's beloved, regular volunteers are staying home following guidance from Centers for Disease Control pertaining to COVID-19 and higher risk groups. We miss those who cannot be with us right now terribly, and of course we understand. At the same, our critical work feeding community is needed now, more than ever.
Enter the North Carolina National Guard.
Clad in their standard issue uniforms and PPE, the team of 41 assigned to Second Harvest stood at attention, listening intently as food bankers spoke about the dire need across our region and thanked each and every member for their service.
"I love my country, my state, my community," explained one young soldier to a local reporter covering the National Guard presence at the food bank. "I was built for duty. I keep my heart and mind focused on honor and making a difference. That's what I do. That's what we do."
“The North Carolina National Guard is going to provide an important humanitarian public service to our communities, as they lend their time and talents to Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC and our sister Feeding America Food Banks,” said Second Harvest's CEO Eric Aft.
Members of the National Guard have been deployed to multiple food banks across the state. At our food bank, they will provide a range of support from inspecting and sorting donated and rescued food to building pallets of food provided by the federal government through the North Carolina Department of Agriculture to assisting Second Harvest’s Providence Community Meals program in assembling the 30,000 meals being prepared each week to helping the Food Bank inspect and pack donated eggs and more.
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