Donation from Food Lion, Timely
More than 1,700 pounds of food recently was donated by Food Lion to support Thomas Nelson's food pantry at the Hampton campus.
A timely visit and a generous spirit led to Food Lion making a donation of more than 1,700 pounds of products to the food pantry at Thomas Nelson's Hampton campus. And with the coronavirus pandemic interrupting students' lives and schedules, the donation couldn't have come at a better time for the College community.
It all began in January when Angela Wheeler, a regional community relations specialist at Food Lion's headquarters in Salisbury, N.C., was in the area on a regular visit. As she often does on the trips, she visited the Virginia Peninsula Foodbank.
"She was talking about what Food Lion's (charitable) focus is going to be for this coming year. One of the areas, besides military, they were interested in was student hunger, college student hunger," said Karen Joyner, CEO of the Virginia Peninsula Foodbank. "I had mentioned we were operating a pantry at two locations of the local community college. She got really interested in that."
About a week later, an article appeared in a local newspaper about the food insecurities of low-income students at Virginia community colleges. Joyner asked Wheeler if Thomas Nelson would be eligible for one of the grants available through the company's Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation. Since the College is a non-profit and a partner with the Foodbank, it was eligible, and a few weeks later, the Food Lion on Big Bethel Road made the donation.
Joyner did not expect such a large amount.
"I was pleasantly surprised," she said. "There was produce included. It wasn't just canned goods. I thought that was very generous of them."
Kevin Weis, who has been the store manager at that Food Lion location for eight months, said it was the largest donation in his time there.
"It just landed in my email one day," he said. "It was mainly done from the home office."
He was on hand when the donation of 1,723 pounds of food was made.
"We have people that work behind the scenes, and they'll reach out to whatever programs that are out there," he said. "If people are in need, we try to help them."
Richard Hurst, counselor and coordinator of Disability Support Services at the College, has been involved with the food pantry since it opened in September 2017 at the Hampton campus. He said it was the largest single donation he can remember. On the day he received a call saying the donation had been made, he went to the Foodbank to pick up the food.
"I wasn't about to let it sit there," he said, knowing how much it was needed on campus.
Last week alone, the food pantries at Thomas Nelson's Hampton and Historic Triangle campuses served more than 300 people. In November, they served a record 700. The entire Food Lion donation was dispersed in about a week, Hurst said.
"That first day was pretty heavy," he said.
The food pantries closed Wednesday, March 25 once protective supplies for staff were depleted. The closure is part of Thomas Nelson's efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
Hurst said the College buys about 500 pounds of food each week for the Hampton campus food pantry. So Food Lion's donation provided almost a month's worth.
"People stepped up and wanted to help," he said.
Food Lion, according to its website, has donated more than $10 million through its Feeds Foundation since 2001.
"Food Lion is just a tremendous partner with the Foodbank," Joyner said. "They're our number one donor between the food and the money that they give us. … They are very generous."
Hurst hopes Food Lion will keep the College in mind when thinking about donations in the future. If you are interested in donating, Hurst mentioned two ways.
One is through the Thomas Nelson Educational Foundation. The other is through AmazonSmile, where a percentage of your purchase price on Amazon orders can be donated to a charity of your choice.
"A dollar can buy over five pounds of food (at the Foodbank)," he said. "The Foodbank allows us to stretch that dollar. A dollar at the Dollar Store only buys one canned good. We're able to buy five cans for that, at least."
The food pantries are among several initiatives of Thomas Nelson's Care Team which is comprised of administrators, faculty, and staff and serves to help students by keeping them informed about various community resources.