“In this world, nothing can be said to be certain except death and taxes,” Benjamin Franklin once observed.
There is a third certainty for the living: the need for food.
No matter our political, religious, philosophical or age differences, the status of our employment or finances, or what language we speak, we all are subject to hunger.
Many of us grew up in a time when food was so plentiful and so easily affordable that we could not imagine the abundance would diminish. But, for many people, food insecurity is now a daily reality. Thus, nonprofit organizations and concerned volunteers are joining forces to fend off malnutrition — not just in the Third World, but within short distances of our homes and workplaces.
Backpack Buddies, an upstart and aggressive homegrown charity, organized a food giveaway July 8, at Pfc. Emory L. Bennett Veterans Park in Orange City.
FarmShare, a nonprofit organization, provided 20,000 pounds of food for the event. While that may seem like a large quantity, that supply could not meet the demand.
After about three hours of loading cars, the edibles ran out. Many people had to be turned away.
The fear of being too late and driving away with nothing prompted some people to show up well before daylight.
“Cars were here at 5:30 a.m.,” Rebecca Brockman, a volunteer with the Society of St. Andrew, said.
In all, more than 500 vehicles passed through the distribution point, and more than 1,000 people were helped.
