The Valley Forge Tourism & Convention Board’s (VFTCB) 11th Annual Fall Freedom from Hunger Drive kicked off with a kitchen takeover at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Pottstown.
VFTCB staff and Montgomery County Commissioners Jamila Winder and Tom DiBello served more than 60 people a meal, including food donated by HUNGRY Catering, and ice cream donated by Merrymead Farm in Lansdale.
The drive builds awareness around the increased need for food banks in the Montgomery County community due to rising costs of food. This fall’s online fundraiser has a goal of collecting $15,000, the equivalent of 180,000 pounds of food to support more than 70 food pantries and soup kitchens through the Montco Anti-Hunger Network.
“The need is greater than ever, and this drive helps fill the shelves and the plates for those who need it most,” said Winder, Vice Chair of the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners. “It’s so important that we have these types of events because we know we have many friends and neighbors throughout Montgomery County that are food insecure.”
“Right now, there are 85,000 people in Montgomery County who experience food insecurity every year – that’s our friends, coworkers, and neighbors,” said DiBello. “Our goal with the Freedom from Hunger Food Drive is to take one big bite out of hunger.”
So far, several Montgomery County businesses and VFTCB member partners are donating either directly to the drive or through sales proceeds:
Dine & Donate Locations
- Honeygrow: Twenty percent of all sales at the King of Prussia location on Wednesday, Oct. 15, with Promo Code GIVE112.
- Blossom Café at Floral & Hardy: $1 for every Peanut Butter and Fluff Latte during September.
- Bartaco: $10 for every catering order placed between Sept. 1 and Oct. 31
- Taku Japanese Steakhouse: Ten percent of all sales from their featured appetizer, Creamy Crab Rangoon, from Sept. 1 to Oct 31.
- Sweet Ashley’s: Custom FFH Gift Box with 16 assorted chocolates and 4 Schuylkill Mud for $29.99 – $5 donated per box sold in store or online.
- Aneu Kitchen (Paoli) – $1 per smoothie purchased from Sept. 1 to Oct. 31.
- Clusters Handcrafted Popcorn: Location in King of Prussia will donate 10 percent of sales from Tubs, Tins, and Pick Six deals Sept. 1-Oct. 31.
Monetary Donations
- Conlin’s Print: $250 (3,000 pounds of food donated).
- Home2Suites by Hilton King of Prussia: $250 (3,000 pounds of food donated).
- PPL Promotions: $250 (3,000 pounds of food donated).
Freedom from Hunger is honored to be nominated as a beneficiary of The Purpose Project during the Playeasy Innovators Summit. Through this generous initiative, Playeasy will donate $4,000 to help further this mission of ending hunger, equivalent to 48,000 pounds of food for those in need.
“We’re inspired to see local businesses step up in such a big way to serve and give back to their community,” said Rachel Riley, Vice President of Marketing & Communications for the VFTCB and a board member for the MontCo Anti-Hunger Network (MAHN). “The need is greater than ever, and that’s exactly what the Freedom from Hunger drive is about, making sure no neighbor goes without. We hope this inspires even more businesses and individuals to join us in meeting this urgent call to care.”
The VFTCB partners with MAHN, a coalition of hunger relief organizations working together to keep families stable with food assistance, to help provide resources to over 70 food pantries, banks, and free meal providers that feed those who are food insecure in Montco.
In 2024, 52 percent of food pantries surveyed by MAHN said they did not have enough food to serve every guest. Ten percent reported meeting only half or less of the demand.
“The leadership Valley Forge Tourism and Convention Board is providing regarding working against hunger is more essential than ever,” said Shannon Isaacs, Executive Director for MAHN. “Initiatives like this show that it is possible to make sure all members of our community have enough in Montgomery County if we all work together.”
The Freedom from Hunger Food Drive benefits all people accessing food pantry services, and was created as a farewell “gift” to Pope Francis in 2015 when the Pontiff stayed in Montgomery County at the St. Charles Borromeo Seminary during the World Meeting of Families in Philadelphia. To date, the VFTCB has collected more than 500,000 pounds of food to feed the hungry in Montco. Learn how you can donate here.
What is now known as the MontCo Anti-Hunger Network was founded in 2014 to help food pantries share food with each other and strengthen the food safety net in Montgomery County. Since then, MAHN has contributed to county food safety net resilience by establishing and building a network of 73 historically siloed food pantries and free meal providers, and developing a highly valued, countywide Food Resource Program.
Find assistance or view the list of MAHN’s food pantries and soup kitchens, hours, as well as other resources, here.
Learn more at VFTCB.
