Marathon food drive to be held along race route
April 1, 2009
Charlie Breitrose/Daily News staff
MetroWest Daily News
DAILY NEWS STAFF
HOPKINTON – The four MetroWest towns that host the Boston Marathon will collect food for local food pantries, which have seen a rise in need during the economic downturn.
As part of “Feed MetroWest – The Marathon Food Drive,” bins will be put out for people to drop off food, from April 6 through Marathon Monday, April 20.
The event is being organized by the MetroWest Leadership Academy Class of 2009, in conjunction with the Hopkinton Chamber of Commerce, the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority and the Hopkinton Independent.
The demand for food in area food pantries has increased recently. More than 90 percent of local pantries have seen an increase in demand, and 27 percent are running out of foodevery time they open, said Moira Munns, director of Natick’s Human Services Department and a member of MetroWest Leadership Academy.
“One of the organizers from Hopkinton figured out if each person in Hopkinton gave one item, 14,000 non-perishable items would be collected,” Munns said. “If every resident of Natick gave one item, we would collect 32,000 items.”
Items requested by food pantries include: pasta, pasta sauce, rice, canned vegetables, juice boxes, instant potatoes, peanut butter, jelly, mayonnaise, ketchup, mustard, canned fruit, granola bars, canned fruit, pancake mix, syrup, flour, sugar, salad dressings, tomato paste, chicken broth, shelf stable milk, packaged meals and personal care items.
Food collection bins will be set up in the four towns along the marathon route. Food collected within each town will be distributed to that town’s authorized food pantry.
In Hopkinton, bins will be located at Collela’s Supermarket and on the Town Common from April 17 through April 20.
Ashland will have collection bins at the Police Station, the Cedar Street Fire Station and the American Legion.
Natick residents can drop donations at the Kennedy Senior Center, Town Hall and the Police Station.
In Framingham, donations will be accepted at the offices of the MetroWest Regional Transit Authority on Waverley Street.
For more information, contact Miriam Kimball at 508-879-4420, ext. 53 or
mkimball@metrowestymca.org.
(Charlie Breitrose can be reached at 508-626-3964 or cbreitro@cnc.com.)
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