Recreation Centers Collecting Holiday Food Donations

ARLINGTON, VA — Arlington residents looking for a way to help families in need during the holiday season are encouraged to donate non-perishable foods outside 12 county community centers on Dec. 12 and 13, according to a release from the Arlington County Department of Parks and Recreation.

Donations of non-perishable foods are welcome, including canned soup, vegetables, tuna, tomatoes and beans, as well as cooking oil. Participants are asked to wear a face covering.

Arlington residents can drop-off their donations at the following community centers:

• Arlington Mill, 909 S Dinwiddie St., Arlington, VA 22204
• Aurora Hills, 735 18th St. S, Arlington, VA 22202
• Barcroft, 4200 S Four Mile Run Drive, Arlington, VA 22206
• Carver, 1415 S Queen St., Arlington, VA 22204
• Fairlington, 3308 S Stafford St., Arlington, VA 22206
• Gunston, 300 N Park DrArlington, VA 22203
• Langston-Brown, 2121 N Culpeper St., Arlington, VA 22207
• Lee, 5722 Lee HighwayArlington, VA 22207
• Lubber Run, 300 N Park Drive, Arlington, VA 22203
• Madison, 3829 N Stafford St., Arlington, VA 22207
• Thomas Jefferson, 3501 S 2nd St., Arlington, VA 22204
• Walter Reed, 2909 16th St. S, Arlington, VA 22204

Feeding America predicted last summer that 50 million people, including 17 million children, could face hunger by year’s end because of the pandemic. Feeding America projects the food insecurity rate in Arlington will rise to 8.4 percent in 2020, up from 5.4 percent in 2018.

Feeding America says that 80 percent of its food banks — or 4 in 5 — are serving more people than they were at the same time last year. With the pandemic worsening during the holiday season, many people who never before worried about how they’d pay for a holiday meal are turning to food banks for the first time.

From the beginning of the pandemic in March, Feeding America distributed 4.2 million meals — enough to provide every U.S. resident with breakfast, lunch and dinner for just over four days.

In the first four months of the pandemic, 4 in 10 people were first-time visitors to food banks, according to Feeding America.

How To Support The Patch Holiday Food Drive

Patch has teamed with Feeding America to help raise awareness on behalf of the millions of Americans facing hunger. Feeding America, which supports 200 food banks across the country, estimates that in 2020, more than 50 million Americans will not have enough nutritious food to eat due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. This is a Patch social good project; Feeding America receives 100 percent of donations. Find out how you can donate in your community or find a food pantry near you.