Donations are coming in for the Kiwanis Club of Snyder’s annual Goodfellows food drive, but more is needed to ensure that needy families in the area receive the support they need this holiday season.
Club Member Darryl Calley said current collection totals are lagging far behind last year’s figure of $4,456. In 2016, Kiwanis Club members distributed food to 643 area residents.
Reflective of a struggling local economy, donations to the food drive have decreased in recent years. For example, donations averaged around $8,000 from 2009-12, but fell as low as $2,978 in 2015.
Canned food donations are being received at a brisk clip, but monetary donations are needed to purchase perishable food items, Calley said.
How much food is purchased and how many families receive aid is entirely dependent on donations, he said.
“We use monetary donations to purchase food items, like beans, rice, chicken and eggs,” he said. “We used to be able to raise enough money that we’d have enough funds for the next year, which made for a good rotation, but it’s not that way anymore.”
Area residents can donate money to the Goodfellows drive at any time, but the cutoff for this year’s effort is Dec. 9, Calley said. Donation boxes have been established at all Snyder banks, or people may mail donations to Kiwanis/Goodfellows, PO. Drawer 112, Snyder TX 79550.
The application deadline for this year’s drive is Monday. An application is on Page 4A in today’s edition.