Home.2 September 2003
Scouting for Food
SATURDAY, Nov. 15th, 2003!
American Flag Retirement Drive
Toys for Tots Campaign
Greetings, Neighbors! Since 1988, the Boy Scouts of America have run an annual food collection drive for distribution to the needy in the Washington Area. Troop 111, sponsored by St. Agnes Church, is collecting in the Woodland, Dominion Heights, Waverly Hills, Livingston Heights, and Yorktown High School areas this year. Many of you may remember us from past food drives in your neighborhoods.
"Scouting for Food" is the largest food collection drive in the Washington area by far (involving tens of thousands of Scouts), and your contributions are vital for the success of numerous Churches, Soup Kitchens and other helping organizations. Last year, Scouts in the Washington area collected close to one million pounds of food (of which about 6,000 pounds was collected by Troop 111.) This food goes directly to helping organizations in this area - via the Arlington Food Assistance Center. This collection dwarfs all the other more publicized food drives!
This is how it works - first, we ask that you collect any goods that you're willing to donate, and place them in the provided bag. Canned goods are preferred, but we will be happy to take anything useful. Second, please place the bags back outside late this upcoming Friday night or (preferably) early Saturday morning (by about 8am); we'll be coming back around early Saturday to collect the bags and relay them to the collection center. Our Scouts will be in pairs, in Uniform, and will be accompanied by Parents in automobiles. We will *not* be knocking on your door to solicit contributions.
We will have "reminder" signs posted around our assigned neighborhoods later this week, starting Thursday. We will start collecting at 8:30am Saturday morning, and are usually finished by 10:30am. If we miss your house, the collection point is at Westover Baptist Church (corner of N. Washington Boulevard and N. Patrick Henry Drive, next to Swanson Middle School, about a 5 minute drive) `til about 2pm Saturday afternoon; if your bag has not been picked up by noon (yes, we'll miss a few), please bring it by!
Here is a message from Nancy Cude, Director of AFAC:
"Please consider a donation to the Boy Scout Food Drive on November 15, 2003. The food donated will come directly to the Arlington Food Assistance Center where volunteers will sort and shelve it to be ready for immediate distribution. Our center serves local residents who are in temporary need of food assistance. Our clients are referred to us by a wide variety of social agencies, including the Department of Human Services agencies, school nurses and counselors, the Red Cross, and many Churches. We have been serving approximately 450 families a week but the recent crisis has seen our numbers increase greatly - while at the same time our donations are way down. We are in particular need of the basics: cereal, rice, canned meat and fruit, and other canned products such as soup and beans. Thank you for your help to our neighbors."
Troop 111 is again offering to retire your worn-out American Flags as an additional service to the community. This will be done with due respect by Uniformed Scouts at one of our upcoming campouts, the Spring 2004 Projectoree. Many people have been flying the flag since September 11th, 2001, and most of the flags that have been tied to vehicles are no longer suitable for display. If you have any such worn-out flags that you wish to have properly retired, please put them in a separate plastic bag and place them alongside the Scouting for Food bag. [Please do not put them in the same bag as the food - we might miss them!] We will also take State, County or Foreign/National Flags, and will treat them with equal respect.
Finally, the Troop is again working with the U.S. Marines for this year's Toys for Tots Campaign. In this collection, we ask for NEW, UNWRAPPED TOYS. It is our understanding that all toys collected this year will be distributed by the U.S. Marines in Northern Virginia.
If you have any new toys to donate, please place them - unwrapped - in the same bag as the worn-out American flags. [Again, please do not place them in the same bag as the food - we might miss them!] Please be generous! ...and Thanks for your help! Any questions (or complaints), please contact: Dr. Bob, Scoutmaster, Troop 111.
Collections This Coming Saturday, November 15th!
Please Leave All Bags Outside By 8:30am!
United Way and Combined
Federal Campaign Donors - please consider designating
BSA, National Capital Area Council - #8046
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