Support from community members and area businesses brought the annual ‘Firefighters Feeding Families’ food drive to a new level of success this year.
During the 2023 campaign the Columbia-Richland Fire Department brought in enough food donations to fill more than 500 grocery bags. Each bag was then given to an area household in the Midlands that was facing food security needs this Christmas.
“Each year I get more and more impressed by the incredible generosity that the public shows during this project,” said Columbia-Richland Fire Chief Aubrey D. Jenkins, “Once again this year our department and our citizens have done an amazing job meeting hunger needs in our communities. ‘Firefighters Feeding Families’ has truly gotten bigger and better since we first started it in 2020. Based on the way the public has responded I think the campaign will only get bigger and better in the years ahead.”
At 500 bags of groceries distributed, this year’s food drive far surpassed the amount of aid that was handed out last year. In 2022 CRFD gave out roughly 300 bags of food during ‘Firefighters Feeding Families.’ The year before the department handed out about 200 bags of food.
CRFD would like to thank our many community sponsors for making this year’s ‘Firefighters Feeding Families’ Holiday Food Drive a success.
Members of the Columbia City Council all made monetary donations in support of this year’s campaign. The food drive also received financial support from members of the Richland County Council: Council Chairman Overture Walker, Councilman Paul Livingston, Councilwoman Gretchen Barron, Councilman Don Weaver, Councilwoman Jesica Mackey, Councilwoman Cheryl English and Councilwoman Chakisse Newton.
Several members of the Columbia City Council and Richland County Council assisted with taking in and distributing food during ‘Firefighters Feeding Families’
Area businesses also played a huge role in the success of this year’s campaign. Walmart on Forest Drive and Garners Ferry Road in Columbia, Food Lion in Cayce and several area hotels all made large donations of food to assist.
Families that received food assistance from the fire department were able to sign up for it in the weeks ahead of the collection day.
