Bucyrus food drive helps hungry

BUCYRUS - The tradition of collecting food for the hungry of Crawford County will continue next Sunday at Good Hope Lutheran Church in Bucyrus.

The congregation is holding its 16th annual food drive from Oct. 30 to Nov. 20. The public is welcome to donate throughout the month.

Mary Scott, who organizes the event, said the idea of a food drive came to her when she took over the duties of arranging the church’s decorative cornucopia.

“I thought it would be great to fill that with food as a real decorative item,” Scott said.

Everyone else in the church agreed. Food collected is shared between the church’s WOW meal program and the Salvation Army.

“We feed close to 100 people every week,” Scott said of the WOW program. Those meals are served at the church every Wednesday from 5 p.m. until a little after 6 p.m.

Last year’s food drive brought in 1,492 non-perishable food items. This year, Scott wants to collect 1,517 items in honor of the year of the Reformation.

“We're celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation,” Scott said.

It will also begin the 175th year of the church, which was founded in 1842.

Scott said the food adorns the sanctuary of the church so that everyone can see how much has been given, and how much need remains. When everything is collected, the food is sorted for the two charities.

“Usually at a church service near that time we have all of the food blessed,” Scott said. “Then, the food for our own ministry, they will take it down to the dining room and people will put it away.”

The rest of the food gets delivered to the Salvation Army.

“I'm always appreciative that we have some men who are willing to help me get it where it needs to go,” Scott said.

Food donations can be taken during the day to the church’s office at 129 W. Charles St.

“If there's no one right there, if they set the food outside the door, our secretary will see to it that it gets to the right place,” Scott said.

For more information, call the church at 419-562-0286.

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419-563-9225

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