MILFORD, Del. — Volunteers at the Food Bank of Delaware’s Milford branch spent Wednesday morning loading boxes of food into car trunks - but these weren’t just any boxes. Each contained a full Thanksgiving meal, complete with a roaster chicken donated by Perdue Farms.
The effort is part of the annual Thanksgiving for All initiative, a partnership between the Harry K Foundation, the Food Bank of Delaware and Perdue Farms. This year, the organizations increased the number of meal boxes distributed from 700 to 1,000 to meet growing demand.
Thanksgiving For All volunteers.
“We have over 250 students in Kent County, needy families who are going to benefit greatly from these boxes,” said Shawn Selby of Delaware Futures, a statewide nonprofit that helps educate students facing food insecurity. “This means our students won’t have to worry about food insecurity, which they face every day on a constant basis.”
Harry K Foundation founder, Harry Keswani, said the organization’s mission is about more than food; it’s about restoring the comfort and connection that comes with sharing a meal.
“Dinnertime is one of the most precious times, right? You sit with the family and you eat. For some of the children that we feed, sometimes that’s just a luxury,” Keswani said.
Keswani says this year has been tough.
"This year, of course, has been a very trying year, especially with the shutdowns and so on," said Keswani, noting the increase in demand for meal boxes.
Thanksgiving For All volunteers loading up cars.
Magnolia Middle School staff members Grace Cramer and Nicole DeWitt, who were at the Food Bank picking up meals, said they’ve seen a sharp rise in need this year.
“We noticed this year, we went from 23 families a year to 65, and we just weren’t able to maintain that through donations,” DeWitt said.
The meal boxes were distributed to pre-identified families through local schools, ensuring Delaware families can share a Thanksgiving dinner together.