‘One Pig at a Time’ method to bring pork to pantries
GALLIPOLIS, Ohio – The Gallia Community Foundation (GCF) will debut its Fill the Freezer campaign at the 2023 Gallia County Fair, bringing local residents and businesses together to help community members facing food insecurity.
The Fill the Freezer campaign invites buyers at the Gallia County Fair’s Aug. 5 livestock sale to donate their hog purchases to fill the freezers of the county’s food pantries and fight hunger – one pig at a time.
“Gallia County is a community that comes together in times of celebration and in moments of need,” said Olivia Rees, GCF committee member. “As we celebrate the achievements of our local 4-H youth at this year’s livestock sale, we have a unique opportunity to turn that moment into a chance to help feed neighbors and families in need. Together, we can ensure that no one in Gallia County goes hungry.”
The Fill the Freezer campaign, with corporate sponsorship from Columbia Gas and the NiSource Charitable Foundation, partners with the county fair board, local 4-H members, the Southeast Ohio Foodbank, local food pantries, meat processors, area residents, and local corporate sponsors to fight food insecurity. Every 25 pigs donated provides approximately two to three months of fully stocked freezers for local food pantries.
First piloted in the region in 2021 by the Community Foundation for Perry County, the Fill the Freezer campaign was expanded to Hocking County in 2022. Last year, more than 10,000 pounds of meat were donated to food pantries in Perry and Hocking counties through Fill the Freezer, feeding thousands of families in need and supporting those working on the front lines of food insecurity in those counties’ food pantries.
In addition to donating purchases at the livestock sale, buyers, local residents and businesses can partner with GCF and local meat processors to cover meat processing costs. GCF is looking for local corporate sponsors to help sustain its Fill the Freezer campaign.
“We’re excited to bring this innovative, community approach to fighting hunger to Gallia County,” said Rees. “Every year, we receive funding requests from organizations throughout our county who are helping those in
need. Through Fill the Freezer and the Gallia Community Foundation, everyone can give something – time, talent or treasure – to lift up our residents and our communities today and for generations to come.”
The Gallia Community Foundation was established in 2011 by area residents to grow charitable giving that fills immediate needs and seizes the most promising opportunities for the people in Gallia County now and into the future. It is a geographic affiliate of the Foundation for Appalachian Ohio, a regional community foundation serving the 32-county region.
To learn more about the Gallia Community Foundation or to make a gift to support its work in Gallia County, visit www.AppalachianOhio.org/GCF, email gallia@ffao.org or call 740.753.1111.