Efforts to feed Fort Smith made an impact in 2022
As food and gas prices skyrocketed in 2022, the need for help in the River Valley continued to rise.
Local coverage of the challenges helped publicize food deliveries, donations and giveaways at Thanksgiving and Christmas time. Publicity about a downturn in donations and an increase in need helped local nonprofits met the challenges last year and more stories will continue to cover 2023 efforts.
The demand for food for those struggling was evident at the Thanksgiving food drive-thru giveaway at Martin Luther King Jr. Park, where Charolette Tidwell and volunteers from the Antioch for Youth & Family passed out supplies of food. Eggs, milk, turkeys and more went home to people in need before Thanksgiving.
On Dec. 20, Antioch volunteers delivered 2,670 pounds of ham to Trusty Elementary school. Every student received a ham, Tidwell said. Antioch is the largest food pantry in a seven-county area of western Arkansas.
Antioch also provides a weekly drive-thru service for people needing food. The drive-thru is on Wednesday morning at the food warehouse on N. 32. The drive-thru service started in 2020 during the pandemic. The demand from people needing food increased in 2023 while donations dropped, Tidwell said.
More:Uptick in traffic seen at free Fort Smith food drive-thru
The NAACP Youth Council, established last year in Sebastian County, helped deliver food to families. Police also helped make deliveries in low-income apartment complexes. Sack lunches were needed at schools.
The weather also complicated struggles last year, from a heatwave in the summer and freezing weather in December, people unhoused faced life-threatening situation.s
But the Salvation Army's Red Kettle Drive reported a downturn in giving. Day shelters were full before Christmas Day.
An ice skating rink helped raise money for the Community Rescue Mission, although freezing weather with subzero wind chills was too cold for outdoor skating in a blast of wintry weather.
Meanwhile, a crew working on a film about homelessness arrived in Fort Smith and visited the Riverview Hope Campus. A feature film is in the works that addresses homelessness nationwide.
More:Red Kettle campaign falls $12,000 short this year
At the Fort Smith Salvation Army, the Red Kettle drive fell short in donation collections before Christmas, said Capt. Bradley Hargis. Donations were down about $12,000 this year. Online fundraising continues in the new year, Hargis said.
In June, the River Valley Regional Food Bank responded to an emergency in Sebastian County. Flooding affected Greenwood residents. Crews loaded up food and water to deliver to Greenwood residents.
Lyn Poplin, associate pastor at Greenwood United Methodist Church. The church relief committee members collected the supplies at the Fort Smith food bank headquarters and drove everything to Greenwood, a 15-minute drive south of Fort Smith in the southern part of Sebastian County.
This article originally appeared on Fort Smith Times Record: How coverage of nonprofits had an impact in 2022 in the Fort Smith
