Food City will once again sponsor a pair of holiday drives to help those in need. Food City is launching the annual Johnia Berry Toy Drive, now in its 16th year, and the third-annual Friends & Pets in Need Holiday Food Drive.
Due to COVID-19, this year’s Johnia Berry Toy Drive will be virtual.
“The pandemic has certainly made 2020 a year of unique challenges, but we feel the toy drive is as important as ever this year,” says Joan Berry. “The virtual option will allow us to safely continue to supply much-needed toys to area organizations as we’ve done for the last 15 years.”
The virtual toy drive will kick-off on Nov. 11 and continue through Dec. 3. Online donations may be securely made at JohniaBerry.org. Contributions are tax deductible and will be used to purchase and ship toys to needy children across East Tennessee and Southwest Virginia.
The Berry Family have selected a number of local agencies to receive toys this year, including Tri-State Children’s Home, Safe Passage Women’s Shelter, Community Help Center of Northeast TN, Cumberland Mountain Community Services of Cedar Bluff, VA, ETSU’s Little Bucs, HOPE Center of Greeneville, TN, local schools in Virginia and Tennessee and many others.
The Friends & Pets in Need Holiday Food Drive will also start on Nov. 11 and run through Dec. 31.
Specially marked bags containing non-perishable food items, as well as bags containing pet food products will be available for purchase for only $10 (plus tax) at all area Food City locations. Customers wishing to purchase the bags may deposit them in the collection bins located at the front of the store. All of the products collected will benefit local hunger relief organizations and animal shelters throughout the region.
“Hunger is a serious problem throughout our region, especially during the holidays and colder winter months. Food City is proud to host a number of hunger relief programs throughout the year, including our Friends & Pets in Need Holiday Food Drive. The drive will benefit local hunger relief organizations and animal shelters throughout our area at a critical time,” says Steven C. Smith, Food City’s president and CEO.
