Helping out with food: Comfort Keepers complete successful food drive

PARKERSBURG – The 15th annual Feed Seniors Now Food Drive organized another successful collection to help seniors in need.

According to Joanie Yeomans, COO/Co-owner of Comfort Keepers of the Mid-Ohio Valley, the drive collected over 2,000 pounds of food to distribute to seniors in need through local partners FaithLink in Wood County and Harvest of Hope in Washington County.

"It's an annual food drive, which is a national food drive done by all the Comfort Keeper franchises in their local areas, for the benefit of their local area," Yeomans said "It's a great chance for us to help some of the people that we normally wouldn't be able to help through our services. So, it means a lot to us in that way."

Yeomans said along with the 2,000 pounds of food, cash donations were also made which allows them to purchase specific items some may not think to donate, like shelf-stable milk, to ensure seniors have nutritious options during inclement weather or emergencies.

"It's a great thing to have available in the food pantries for our seniors to get into their hands so that if they come into some bad weather, or it's just too cold for them to get out," Yeomans said.

She said both distribution partners contacted Comfort Keepers asking for extra donations due to high demand.

"I don't know that they've ever called us in the past and said, 'Do you have any other food, we really could use them.' So, it's definitely a year where there's a very strong need."

The annual food drive shows the caring spirit of the local community in meeting seniors' basic needs.

From anonymous drop-offs to school fundraisers, residents step up every year to help their neighbors.

Yeomans expressed her gratitude to the community and collection sites that have supported the drive for 15 years.

"Every year makes us stop and say what a great place to live," Yeomans said about the support from the community. "We have different donors that are very consistent from year to year and then we have people who change, and other people step up, and it's just wonderful to see that consistently."

Douglass Huxley can be reached at dhuxley@newsandsentinel.com