Blustery cold winds, coupled with colder rain, failed to drench the enthusiasm of hundreds of Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts as they gladly took part in delivering collected food supplies on Saturday.
The Scouts, with some help from their parents, delivered possibly as much as 40,000 pounds of non-perishable food items to the Harvest Regional Food Bank in Texarkana, Ark., and to other central collection points during the annual Caddo Area Scouting for Food and Books Drive.
The Scouts spent Saturday morning picking up sacks of food supplies on residential porches throughout a 10-county area in both Texas and Arkansas. They had spent the last two weeks distributing those sacks to porches in order to collect for the food drive.
Steve Knollenberg, district director for the Boy Scouts of America Caddo Area Council, said that on average, usually about 500 Scouts participate in the annual drive, which has existed for about the past 30 to 35 years. Of the 10-county area, the drive covers two counties in Texas, while the other eight are in Arkansas.
"Of all of our drive participants, about 80 percent are Scouts with the other 20 percent being parents," he said. "The Scouts and their parents like to be able to help other people. This is something that leads people to making a good habit of helping other people throughout a lifetime. We hope this experience will have a permanent impact on the lives of our Scouts."
After the food supplies are delivered to central collection points, such as the Harvest Food Bank, they are provided to area food kitchens, shelters and food pantries for distribution to needy residents, said Camille Wrinkle, Harvest Regional Food Bank executive director.
"We have volunteers who sort out the different food products, such as canned vegetables, fruits and desserts," she said. "Then the food goes where it's needed. We hope that what we collect will supply us through the winter season. We also rely on the community to bring in both cash donations and food donations to help get us through the rest of the year. Hunger is a continuous need. It doesn't have a season-and we're grateful to the Scouts and other organizations for helping us fulfill the need to combat hunger."