The Care & Share Food Bank in Montello has seen more than a 80 percent increase in need over this time last year throughout Marquette County.

Because of this, Sylvia Phillis, supervisor of the Commission on Aging Unit of the Marquette County Department of Human Services, anticipates that there will be an increase in demand for its annual Thanksgiving project, which started Oct. 1.

For the past 11 years, the food bank has raised money for its annual "Adopt a Family for Thanksgiving" fundraising project, a service for local families that depend on the food bank for food. Each Thanksgiving, the food bank provides each family registered with the food bank all the traditional fare for their Thanksgiving dinner for free.

The meals, which cost about $20 each, are packaged together in a box. All of the meals are paid for through private donations to the Care & Share Food Bank.

And as of Wednesday, the food bank had raised $2,500; the goal is $9,000. Last year's project raised almost $12,000 after an initial goal of $8,000.

Interested individuals, organizations or businesses can contribute money to this year's food drive until Nov. 9.

"Twenty dollars buys a box," Phillis said. "Each box has more than enough food to feed a family of four."

The food bank, with the help of about 100 area volunteers, plans to prepare 400 Thanksgiving boxes. However, more can be prepared if the need and money is there. Phillis said about another 100 boxes were put together and given out during last year's distribution day.

Money not used for the Thanksgiving project will be applied to the food bank's Christmas need requests.

Each box provides turkey, stuffing, potatoes, yams, Jell-O, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, whipped topping, rolls and margarine. Other nonperishable food items, such as spaghetti, canned vegetables, soup, cereal and peanut butter, from the food bank also will be added to the boxes.

A majority of the Thanksgiving food is purchased at Sherm's Piggly Wiggly in Princeton.

To get the meal, people must be registered with the food bank. The meals will be distributed from 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 19 at the food bank building in Montello, in the old jail building behind the courthouse. Volunteers will deliver boxes to people who are homebound the week before Thanksgiving, Phillis said.

Phillis said most of the work on distribution day is done outside, with the recipients of the meals never leaving their cars.

"We ask that people don't start lining up until 1 p.m., but there will be people lined up for eight to 15 blocks by 8 a.m.," Phillis said. "They want to make sure they get their box."

Adopt a family

Twenty dollars covers one family; donations for the Thanksgiving project will be accepted through Nov. 9 at Care & Share Food Bank; attn: Thanksgiving Project, COA Unit of DHS, P.O. Box 405, Montello, WI 53949. For more information, call (608) 297-3146.

kkirkpatrick@capitalnewspapers.com

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