An enthusiastic and effective group of volunteers showed up for the St. Peter's Lutheran Rise Against Hunger event on Oct. 5.
Coordinator Lynn Carlson shared how the Marble Falls church program has grown.
“There's a need for food everywhere. We get a bunch of bulk food into the church,” she said. “We break it down into smaller packages. They are then shipped to those in need.
“Last year, we put together 10,000 meals. Those meals went to Honduras. This year we're aiming higher,” she added. “We're looking for 20,000 meals. We don't know exactly where they're going to go, but they're going to be put to good use.”
Dozens spent the day volunteering for a couple of hours that Sunday. The event included a half hour church service as well.
“The food is brought out by Rise Against Hunger of Houston. They deliver the food, unload and break the meals down,” Carlson explained.
Volunteers stood in an assembly line format to package the food. Every time they reach 1,000 meals some of the youngest volunteers were thrilled to “ring a gong.”
“It's a great way to involve our community. We have our local community and our at-large community,” she said.
The church has become known for its passion for feeding communities.
“We're the food church. We've got Rise Against Hunger. We have St. Peter's Blessings (coming up). We're a big supporter of The Helping Center (Marble Falls),” she added. “That's where we see a lot of need is the food insecurity locally and abroad.”
Next, organizers are hosting a Blessings Fest event from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 18 at the Boys & Girls Club of the Highland Lakes, Marble Falls unit, 1701 Broadway Avenue. That event raises money to buy food that is distributed on Marble Falls ISD campuses.
“For both of these events, it's emphasizing loving our neighbor. We're loving our neighbor locally with the Blessings Fest and helping the local kids,” she continued. “We're loving our neighbors on a wider scale with The Helping Center too.”
The theme of the most recent Rise Against Hunger event was “God's Work, Our Hands.”
“We're loving our neighbor with the Ark (of Highland Lakes). And then on a global scale, we're helping with Rise Against Hunger,” Carlson said. “We're all inter-connected. It's about people needing food. We're in the position to help.”
For more information, call 830-693-2253 or visit stpetersmarblefalls.org. The church is located at 1803 FM 1431 in Marble Falls.
