The Disaster Relief Food Ministry, a local nonprofit organization, works to distribute food boxes to those in need in Patrick and Henry counties.
Founder Jimmy Willard said he started the food ministry in 2011 after he started driving a school bus.
“I see where the kids were getting off the buses, you know, people were just in need. I’d been addicted to crystal meth for about 20 years, and this year makes 23 years I’ve been clean, so when I got clean, I wanted to do something to give back,” he said.
When he first started out, Willard said he would give two boxes to a family that lived on Bull Mountain.
“We’re up to now, it’s probably 1,500-1,600 families every month,” he said.
In addition to dates where anybody who signs up can get a box, Willard said the non-profit also recently started a senior citizen program for those 60-years-old or older that meet the income guidelines.
“It’s fixed where you and your spouse can get a box, and we’re giving out 650 of them,” he said.
The senior distribution in Patrick County is the second Thursday every month from 3:30-5 p.m., and the regular distribution is the third Thursday every month from 12:30-3:30 p.m.
The Bassett senior distribution is the second Tuesday of every month from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The regular Bassett distribution is the fourth Tuesday of every month from 12:30-1:30 p.m.
Despite the multiple distribution days, Willard wants to do more to help the community.
As a result, he partnered with Feeding America, which helped facilitate applying for a grant to get a food distribution truck for a mobile food pantry.
Starting on December 30, he said the organization began going into Ararat and Meadows of Dan “to cover that end of the county, too.”
The mobile food pantry will be set up at the Ararat Ruritan Building from 10-11:30 a.m. and at the Meadows of Dan Community Center from 1-2:30 p.m. on the fourth Saturday of every month.
“Ararat will cover Ararat and Claudville, and then the Meadows of Dan Community Center will cover Meadows of Dan and part of Woolwine,” he said.
Willard said those in need can sign up to get boxes in the drive thru.
“They sign up, and then once you get signed in the system, it’s all handled” electronically. “Then when you come through the next time someone will check your name off of the list,” he said.
“There’s no requirements other than the senior boxes, you got to be over 60 and meet the income guidelines,” he said. “For the regular box, that’s an income guideline, but nobody never is close to it. We can’t ask for any proof, any ID, or anything like that,” he said.
In total, Willard estimates the agency distributes more than 1,000 food boxes in Patrick County each month. During the regular distribution days, Feeding Southwest Virginia also will be set up.
Feeding Southwest Virginia is a food bank that offers subsidized food for people to purchase. It works with grocery stores and others to offer self-stable food at a reduced cost to those in need.
Willard said he will sometimes leave his debit card with Feeding Southwest Virginia when they set up to ensure customers are able to purchase the food they need regardless of their financial situation.
“I don’t want anybody to leave without any food,” he said.
Willard added the organization also helps with natural disasters in other areas, but “home is taken care of first.”
The organization is based in a warehouse in Bassett.
“I’ve always trucked this stuff here (Patrick County) and delivered it, and it got so big that I couldn’t deliver it anymore,” he said.
Willard said now the boxes are put together and stored in the warehouse before they are loaded into the truck for transport. Boxes include everything a person needs from the five food groups – cereal, pasta, shelf-stable milk, raisins, green beans, cheese, a frozen food item, and other types of food.
Each box “can sustain a family of four for about two weeks. We try to stay away from the days that the” Patrick County Food Bank “gives out” its boxes,” he said.
Those wishing to volunteer should contact Willard at (276) 229-6272 or email him at drfm.inc@gmail.com. To donate, go to www.drfminc.com and click on the donate tab, or mail a check to P.O. Box 993 Stuart, VA, 24171.
For more information, visit Facebook.com/DisasterReliefFoodMinistryInc.
