Staff and volunteers from various organizations and businesses gather before distributing more than 100,000 pounds of food and household essentials to five Dulles Corridor regional food pantries and nonprofits. Photo by Mercia Hobson.
On June 6, Cornerstones, StarKist, and Feed the Children gathered for the third annual summer food and resource rally at Cornerstones Food Rescue Empowerment Enterprise in Sterling. Three Fairfax County nonprofits — LINK Against Hunger, South Lakes High School PTSA Food Pantry, and Fellowship Square — and two in the Dulles corridor, Dulles South Food Pantry and Community Lodgings, participated.
Bob Van Hoecke, a board member of Cornerstones, said that the needs of those who experience hunger “don't stop at county lines. … We joined forces when we dealt with other logistical problems in Northern Virginia, transportation, and things of that nature. There's no reason why we shouldn't join forces and collaborate when it comes to things like food insecurity, homelessness, or affordable housing,” Van Hoecke said. "Working together, we will have a greater impact than the sum of our individual efforts."
StarKist head of corporate affairs Michelle Ford Faist opened the event, celebrating the collaborative dedication "to give back to so many people here in the Dulles corridor.”
Tom Aslin, StarKist vice president of marketing, said that despite the economic recovery, many families remain food insecure due to inflation after the conclusion of federal benefit programs and increasing housing and transportation expenses. He reported that over 50 regional corporate leaders, political officials, StarKist employees, volunteers, and community activists have united to combat food poverty.
Aslin said these nonprofits “make a tangible difference in the lives of those who need it most.” They distributed over 100,000 pounds of food and household essentials to prepare for increased summer needs. Each partner received 25-pound boxes of shelf-stable food, including StarKist products, 15-pound boxes of hygiene and personal-care essentials, Avon products, and other items to distribute to the families and individuals they serve.
Del. Karen Keys-Gamarra (D) representing Herndon, Reston, and Oakton and a former Fairfax County school board member, said she understands the need for summer food distribution. She called it "crucial … when many of our students do not have access to our school lunch programs.”
Coco Black, vice president of strategic partnerships at Feed the Children, nonprofit focused on alleviating childhood hunger, said they believe in a world where no child goes to bed hungry. “Summer is the hungriest time of year. We've got some incredible work to do today.” Black reported that more than a third of residents of the Washington, D.C. region were food insecure last year. “It's pretty staggering. ... More than 8,000 meals are going to be distributed today.”
Cornerstones' FREE from Hunger Center collaborates with partners to rescue excess food, store it safely, and provide it to needy families.
“It's incredible, frankly, to walk through a place like this and to see everything from, yes, your StarKist tuna and your chicken, but to your lima beans, your garbanzo beans,” Fairfax County Supervisor Jimmy Bierman (D-Draanesville) said. “Go enjoy the fridge and the freezer.”
Bierman pointed out how cross-county collaboration between Loudoun and Fairfax, as seen with Cornerstones, helps put together groups and organizations recognizing that they are neighbors. “They are our friends, and we want to make sure everybody in our area has a chance to succeed,” he said.
The Summer Food and Resource Rally aims to support Cornerstones' mission, including ensuring people are not hungry.
"Food insecurity affects not only homeless and less fortunate community members but also any family, directly or indirectly, and with a staggering number of cases," Van Hoecke said. “Right now, tens of thousands of people in our community go hungry every night. Our parents shouldn't have to make a decision between taking their child to the doctor or feeding their family. Tons of food are destroyed every day. Yep, here we sit between two of the wealthiest counties in the country, and still we have food insecurity as a major issue.”
Among the many speakers and recognized community leaders were Del. Atoosa Reaser; Christy Zeitz, CEO of Fellowship Square; Kerrie Wilson, CEO of Cornerstone; Travis Arnold, Feed the Children president and CEO; and Roberta Gosling, South Lakes High School Food Pantry.
After the rally, a sea of volunteers helped load the trucks at the Cornerstones Food Hub, and South Lakes High School PTSA Food Pantry members headed back to Reston. That evening, Roberta Gosling, board chair of Cornerstones and co-founder of the South Lakes Food Pantry, wrote an email titled "WHAT. A. DAY!!! Thank you!"
In it, Gosling said they were lucky to have Brigitte from StarKist and her team help them unload and distribute six pallets of StarKist/Feed the Children bounty and dairy and eggs from Cornerstones.
As Van Hoecke said, "Working together, we will have a greater impact than the sum of our individual efforts."