Churches unite for county's largest food drive

A pound of charity may be worth a ton of relief for Lake County's needy, say organizers of the region's largest food drive that kicks off later this month.

Catalyst, a coalition of Lake County churches, will conduct its fourth annual ShareFest food drive over three weekends starting Saturday, Sept 27.

The group aims to collect 100,000 pounds of canned goods for the Northern Illinois Food Bank to help stock food pantries countywide that are low on supplies. Organizers are stressing weight rather than the type of goods.

Food pantries will receive a proportionate monetary credit, 20 cents per every pound of food collected through the drive.

"This year, we are focusing on getting the most credits to the food pantries," said Kim Dougherty, this year's ShareFest food drive coordinator and a volunteer from Village Church of Gurnee. "They can go and choose anything that's available at the Northern Illinois Food Bank, not just the items that are donated in the drive. Cans weigh more than toilet paper, but they can still get those personal items. Everything that is usable will be used. It will just allow greater flexibility."

Last year was the first time the ShareFest drive was conducted countywide, collecting more than 84,000 pounds of food for Lake County food pantries. The drive was conducted on a much smaller scale the two prior years.

More than 35 churches are participating this year, benefiting 43 food pantries mostly in Lake County, and one in McHenry County that also serves Lake County residents.

Part of Catalyst's mission is bringing Lake County churches together in a season of service through various projects, including the food drive.

"We believe that as we demonstrate God's love, people are not only getting food for their stomach, but also hope for the future," said Bill Yaccino, Catalyst executive director. "The hundreds and thousands of volunteers that participate in ShareFest do so because their hearts are overflowing with gratitude for what God has done for them."

For North Shore Community Church in Libertyville, the food drive will be the 7-month-old congregation's first community service effort.

The church's roughly 60 members barely have a place to call their own and meet Sunday mornings in Libertyville's Adler Park lodge.

"It's very easy to focus on yourself when you're new," said Greg Krumes, senior pastor. "This is an immediate way to recognize that the very purpose of the church is to be outward. It's a way to generate a real sense of purpose of who we are. And it's a way of expressing not just what God has done in our lives spiritually but physically the way that he's blessed us."

Volunteers will start canvassing neighborhoods countywide distributing more than 45,000 donation bags in communities from Lake Zurich to Zion and Lake Forest in the east, and from Long Grove all the way north to Antioch.

About 22,000 bags also will be inserted in Sept. 22 editions of the Daily Herald, one of the food drive sponsors along with Sunset Foods and Lake Forest Hospital.

"It's pretty exciting," Dougherty said. "I'm hoping this year we can get even more coming in and people just dropping off (items) on a larger scale. Even if people don't have the bags, they can go to these sites and drop the items off."

Food will be collected at 12 drop-off sites spread throughout the county. For more information or a list of sites, visit catalystweb.org.