The thought of not having enough food to feed your children is frightening for parents. Yet it's a reality that many people live with each week.
"You don't have to go to a third world country to see people in need. They're right at your back door."
Lori Abercrombie has seen the face of need at the Mission of Hope in Dora where people line up hours before the doors open to make sure they get food to feed their families.
This is the last food giveaway before Thanksgiving, so there are new faces lining up outside hoping they can get one of the turkeys given away on this day. Once they got inside volunteers surprised them with a special Thanksgiving breakfast.
It's the type of thing those who've been coming to the Mission of Hope over its 16 year existence have come to expect. Heather Adams says "You come to get your belly fed and also to get your soul fed."
Adams is one of the familiar faces there. A mother of eight, her husband is disabled and the Mission of Hope helps.
“We just get Social Security. I draw food stamps and this just helps supplement what the food stamps don't always get us through," said Adams.
"If you make less than $10,000 a year you can't put a roof over your head, gas in your car and feed your kids, so what we try to do is help with the food," said Abercrombie.
Whether its food to eat, clothes, or blankets to keep warm or something to make the holiday brighter, volunteers at this local food bank provide the basics to people, who can't afford to buy them for whatever reason. It's what they've been doing at the mission of hope for 16 years.
Vicki Ward has been working the Mission of Hope ever since she saw an article in the paper back in 1992.
"What got me was it was all these denominations working together to do God's work. It was Methodists, Baptists, Church of God," said Ward.
| If you'd like to help the Mission of Hope, you can drop off donations from 8am to 11am at 2438 Sharon Blvd. in Dora or you can donate by sending a check payable to Mission of Hope to P.O. Box 878, Dora, AL, 35062. To contact by phone, call 205-647-4766. |
Mission of Hope board chairman Steve Abercrombie says they are getting community support but there is a growing demand on the food pantry.
"The Walker Area Foundation is one of the larger foundations here in Walker County. We get a lot of support from them, the Bankhead Foundation and many area churches large and small."
Those donations provide the food that fills the bags, which fulfill this mission’s goal to feed the hungry with something quite frankly money can't buy.
"We have a saying around here that poverty isn't a lack of money, it's a lack of hope. And we can provide hope," said Lori Abercrombie.
The Mission of Hope, like all area food banks, needs your help this time of year.
