Youth from across Greenwood armed themselves with maps and plastic bags and scoured neighborhoods Sunday collecting canned goods for the 23rd annual “Youth CAN Make A Difference” drive for the Community Food Pantry.
Twelve churches and a group from Mississippi Valley State University participated — more than 200 volunteers in all. They collected about 10,000 cans and also received various donations.
“With the holidays coming up, we want to make sure that people have enough to eat,” said Catherine Dunn, a member of the organizing team.
The event is sponsored by the Catholic Youth Organization of the Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church.
“It’s good for our youth to see the reality of the hunger situation that’s going on right under their noses,” Dunn said.
For a number of youth, including Mollie Malouf of Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, this was their first time to participate.
“I want to help the poor people in town,” Malouf said. “It’s good to help the people in town who don’t have what we have.”
“The mini food drive we did last weekend was very successful,” Dunn said. “It helped us collect so much more. We will definitely do it again next year.”
The food drive seems to increase in popularity each year. Two new churches participated in this year’s drive.
“We would love to have more churches participate next year,” Dunn said. “We need more to unite together to meet this need.”
For more information about donating to the pantry or being a part of next year’s event, contact Dunn at (662) 514-4304.
• Contact Beth Thomas at bthomas@gwcommonwealth.com.
