Volunteers dish up hot bowls of homemade soup at the 2020 Empty Bowls fundraiser held just before a statewide stay-at-home order began due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
File photo
As winter approaches and the pandemic continues, Yadkin Christian Ministries is seeing an increase in the need for food assistance and a decrease in donations.
“We are beginning to see our number of clients increase at the ministry centers,” said YCM Director Beth Steelman. “The winter months are always a difficult season for our clients. We have been blessed by the generosity of many churches, organizations, and individuals with food and monetary donations, but the pandemic has negatively impacted the gifts that we typically receive from churches who are not meeting at this time or are meeting with a reduced capacity.”
Yadkin Christian Ministries has worked for more than three decades to aid those in the community who are struggling to make ends meet. Throughout the pandemic thus far, YCM has continued to provide food for clients at its two locations in Yadkinville and East Bend. Last year YCM served 5,400 clients, providing food for around 17,000 family members.
YCM was able to hold its annual Empty Bowls fundraiser in March just before the shutdown and a modified version of its annual Walk for Hunger last month but some food drives the agency depends upon have been cancelled.
“This year Yadkin County Schools will not be able to conduct the Friends Feeding Friends project, due to the pandemic. We totally understand that the safety of students and educators is and should be their first priority,” Steelman said. “We also recognize that the absence of these gifts is a tremendous loss of shelf staple items that we have come to depend on for the winter months. We are currently working to acquire some resources to help with this loss of food items.”
Steelman said monetary or canned food donations are greatly appreciated at this time.
“Those items which seem to always be in short supply are cereal, saltine crackers, sugar, flour, dried pintos, and canned pintos,” she said.
For those wishing to donate to Yadkin Christian Ministries, donations may be dropped off at either the Yadkinville or East Bend location, checks may be mailed to 117 Woodlyn Drive, Yadkinville, NC 27055.
For more information on services provided by Yadkin Christian Ministries, to donate or volunteer, visit www.y-c-m.org or call 336-677-3080.
Kitsey Burns Harrison may be reached at 336-258-4035 or on Twitter and Instagram @RippleReporterK.