(From left) Arun Raj holds open a car door while Yomi Akinyemi, pastor of Zion Worship Center, places a food box inside. Photo by Bonnie Hobbs.
With the help of volunteers, Western Fairfax Christian Ministries (WFCM) distributed Thanksgiving Food Boxes to 600 local families in need. The event was Saturday, Nov. 21, outside Grace Covenant Church in Chantilly, and the recipients were WFCM clients.
Each family got a turkey, ham or chicken, plus a Farmers to Families food box containing eggs, milk, butter, rolls, cakes and pies. They also received a box of nonperishable items, including canned fruits and vegetables, gravy, stuffing, potatoes, yams, cranberry sauce, fresh fruit, sugar, oil, chicken broth, rice, juice and flour.
Supervisor Kathy Smith (D-Sully) coordinated the Farmers to Families boxes coming from Richmond. Centreville United Methodist Church (CUMC) and Lord of Life Lutheran Church each contributed the money for 150 boxes, and Ox Hill Baptist Church funded 50 boxes. In addition, the Westfields Business Owners Assn. (WBOA) donated a significant amount of money toward purchasing the food boxes.
Also funding boxes were the Food Lion Feeds Foundation and the Clifton Lions Club, as well as the following churches: Cedar Run Community, Centreville Baptist, Church of the Ascension, Fairfax Church of Christ, King of Kings Lutheran, St. John’s Episcopal, St. Andrew Lutheran and Expectation Church.
CUMC, Ox Hill Baptist and the WBOA also paid for the turkeys, butter and other perishable items.
In addition, WFCM provided boxes of nonperishable items, plus gift cards for meat at the local Giant, for Centreville Immigration Forum clients, in partnership with CUMC.