Clark County volunteers collected 210,000 kilos of meals for the fortieth annual Stroll & Knock, the nation’s largest one-day meals drive.
This 12 months, organizers mailed 206,000 baggage to properties throughout Clark County to fill with nonperishable meals and toiletries. On Saturday, about 2,000 volunteers collected the luggage of meals and gadgets, which shall be donated to the Clark County Meals Financial institution.
Stroll & Knock President Justin Wooden stated he was pleased with this 12 months’s turnout, regardless of the chilly climate.
“The food is almost secondary. What’s most important is the amount of volunteers,” Wooden stated. “The main reason we do Walk & Knock is to engage the community and get kids involved in community service.”
To Assist
Stroll & Knock drop-off barrels will settle for nonperishable meals donations by in the present day. They’re at Clark County Riverview Financial institution branches, Les Schwab Tire Facilities and McDonald’s. See an inventory at walkandknock.org/barrel-locations.
Though donations have returned to pre-pandemic ranges, Wooden stated the variety of volunteers has dropped from about 4,000 to 2,000, which was certainly one of this 12 months’s challenges.
Because of decrease volunteer turnout, some properties in Clark County have been missed. Nevertheless, neighborhood members can nonetheless deliver nonperishable meals donations to collaborating areas by in the present day. Drop-off barrels are at Clark County Riverview Financial institution branches, Les Schwab Tire Facilities and McDonald’s. (Discover a listing at walkandknock.org/barrel-locations.)
“While we have 2,000 volunteers, it is hard to cover the entire county, so homes do get missed,” Wooden stated. “We try to cover as much as we can, but we ask if we missed your home, to drop those donations off at one of the drop-off barrel locations.”
Stroll & Knock works with numerous neighborhood organizations to arrange the meals drive, together with NW Pure.
As a part of an annual custom, NW Pure sponsored a breakfast for 100 volunteer group leaders earlier than they headed out to gather donations.
“Food insecurity is still a very real problem in Clark County, and Walk & Knock’s work is absolutely amazing,” stated Nelson Holmberg, a neighborhood affairs supervisor for NW Pure. “As a company that cares about the wellness of the communities we serve, NW Natural is very proud to be a longtime supporter of the biggest food drive of the year, and we’re appreciative of the work of hundreds of volunteers across the county each year who literally walk neighborhoods to pick up filled bags from porches to stock the shelves of food banks and pantries across the region.”
In 2023, Stroll & Knock collected 271,095 kilos of meals and toiletries and $20,000 in money.
Vancouver Lions Membership members Bud Pasmore and Doug Rae began Stroll & Knock in 1982 with assist from the Hazel Dell and Orchards/Evergreen Lions golf equipment. Because it started, Stroll & Knock has collected between 150,000 and 300,000 kilos of meals yearly.
“I just think it’s so basic for people to have food,” former Stroll & Knock President Tom Knappenberger beforehand stated. “Walk & Knock is local, it’s homegrown and it’s grown into the largest in the country. We should be proud of that here in Vancouver.”