CHARLOTTE — Parishioners at St. Matthew Church rallied in July for the annual Monsignor McSweeney World Hunger Drive, which provides support to communities in need with food, essential supplies, sustainability projects, healthcare and education.
This year volunteers shipped 11 containers of supplies – three more than last year – totaling 418,000 pounds. The parish meal packing event, along with the St. Matthew School and Y-Guides meal packing events, provided nearly 400,000 meals that are being shipped to Haiti and Jamaica. Funds raised are being sent to St. Mark School in Haiti to support nearly 50 students with a year’s education, healthcare, books and food.
The campaign is also funding sustainability items such as tilapia ponds, chickens and agriculture. In addition, the parish collected $6,000 and 6,000 pounds of food to contribute to local food pantries. New this year, funds are also being sent to the Diocese de La Guairá, Venezuela, to support orphans.
— Photo provided by Ed Craig
CHARLOTTE — Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte recently received $1,725 from the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation just in time to help feed local residents. Catholic Charities will use the gift to stock their Charlotte food pantry that serves our neighbors in need.
“It is through community partners like the Food Lion Charitable Foundation that we are able to provide much needed food assistance to so many individuals and families existing in poverty. We can only carry out this type of outreach through this generosity,” said Dr. Gerard Carter, executive director and CEO of Catholic Charities.
Catholic Charities’ mission statement is,:“We are a Christian ministry of charity, service and justice dedicated to providing help to those in need, hope to those in despair, and inspiration for others to follow.” The agency focuses its efforts to fulfill this mission on three key areas: strengthening families, building communities and reducing poverty. Services are available to all regardless of their age, race, ethnicity, religious affiliation or economic/social background.
The Charlotte office operates a client choice model food pantry two days per week. Food pantry participants have reported difficulty in affording a healthy diet. Some with special dietary needs tell Catholic Charities that they often have to eat food that makes them sick if it is all they have. This creates a dangerous cycle that can pull people further into poverty and poor health. The agency wants to offer more nutritious choices, information and encouragement to help participants become healthier.
To combat hunger in the Charlotte area, this award will be used to purchase dairy products, fresh fruits, vegetables and foods with a high nutritional value. These funds will help the agency increase people’s access to fresh food and improve the quality of the food they eat. The overall goals are that participants will be food secure, gain more nutritional knowledge and make changes toward a diet that is beneficial for their health.
Established in 2001, the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation provides financial support for programs and organizations dedicated to feeding the hungry in the communities it serves. Since its inception, the foundation has awarded more than $10 million in grants.
— Branden M. Lewis