Copyright CBS News
Service organizations in Metro Detroit are banding together to help feed people in need. Three Ann Arbor, Michigan, Rotary clubs teamed up with the Kids Coalition Against Hunger on Saturday to package meals for families in Southeast Michigan and around the world. Pioneer High School in Ann Arbor hosted the 4th annual Send Hunger Packing event. "Having resources such as Rotary that gives these food baskets and these food packages, it just really helps, you know, bridge that gap between when someone can have their next meal or not," Sofia Nazarian, a student at Skyline High School, said. Two hundred volunteers helped to pack the nutritious meals. "It was developed by a food scientist some years ago, and it has amino acids, rice, protein. It's also vegetarian, so it can be shipped without concern about dietary restrictions," Julie Dunbar, co-chair of Send Hunger Packing, said. Tasks in the assembly line at the event included holding the bag, scooping the food, sealing, and carrying the boxes outside and loading them onto a truck. "My family, we are immigrants, and I'm a first-generation American, and I know that they had had help from events such as these when they were students at U of M. So, it really helps to be part of a system like this that helps families that were like mine," Nazarian said. For the first time, some of the meals will go to two Ann Arbor food banks, Food Gatherers and Packard Health. The rest will be shipped to disaster relief zones like Jamaica, which is still recovering from the devastating effects of Hurricane Melissa. "I think this year, everyone is really excited to give back more than ever, because, you know, the food banks are struggling, and they're looking for more meals, and we're very lucky to be able to provide some meals for them," Catalina Boyle, event coordinator, said. The objective was to pack 50,000 meals, but volunteers surpassed that goal, reaching about 57,000. "We're not done with this, and we're going to continue fighting for people that deserve what they need and the food that they want. And this is just the beginning of what we hope to do with Rotary ... with Send Hunger packages," Nazarian said.
