The Village distributes free food in LaFayette
BY JOHN BRICE
THE LAFAYETTE SUN
LAFAYETTE — Valley Community Outreach volunteers known as “The Village” worked with local leaders to provide free food, to area residents in need, during a drive up distribution in the parking lot of LaFayette High School adjacent to the gymnasium on Saturday, March 28. Cars lined up to receive packages of critical food assistance that were handed out to them by the volunteers. Director Clinton Gilder shared details of the day’s efforts.
“We circulate through the cities,” he said. “We hit Valley, Lanett, LaFayette and then portions of West Point — because they are right on the line. We try to give everybody a chance to partake in what we are doing, because we are just blessed to be able to do it. If we have got someone to [help] get the word out that we are coming, that is the main thing [that helps a lot]. We want to say thank you again to the East Alabama Food Bank, they are located in Auburn, they are the ones that open that door for that opportunity. We are in Chambers County and they cover seven counties.”
Gilder also said he is thankful for the cooperation of his partners in LaFayette.
“The city support [is great], the police department came out yesterday to talk to us about what they can block off to keep a smooth flow,” he said. “Mayor Vines, he helped out. Council Member Williams came out yesterday and helped pack bags all day. Council Member Thomas and Chief Doody, they came out and helped us reach the people. We also sent about 25 bags to the senior center, then we sent some bags to the housing authority as well. That is where that unity of effort means a lot for us.”
Gilder said building relationships in the community helps ensure positive community outreach.
“We grew up in the area, but I [spent] 30 years in the military,” he said. “We are all coming back, I don’t know where people live now or who is still here. [I am thankful for] the municipal support of all those who came out. I have got to mention P.H.Y.R.E., they are the outreach that does back to school. Adrian Holloway and her team, extensive thanks to them. Tree of Life helped me to pack a lot of the things on that end.”
There were a wide variety of food items distributed, Gilder said.
“On the meat side we had breaded nuggets, glazed thick sliced bacon, we had sausage, we were able to give out hot links and chicken legs,” he said. “On the other side we had a chance to give out a lot of these sides i.e. rice, potatoes, macaroni and cheese and just a slew of all types of drinks. We gave out over 400 gallons of sweet tea. [We were] able to push that out, [and when we were collecting items, we asked ourselves], ‘how can we help make a meal?’”
Gilder concluded his thoughts by highlighting the path forward for serving the community successfully.
“I had a chance to speak with the mayor and the council members,” he said. “[I shared with them that] what we are trying to do is establish consistency. We all have ties to LaFayette by family. If we were born here, family here, grandparents here, what have you. We don’t want to leave LaFayette out. I think today’s impact is to let them see what we are doing so when they get the word, [they know to] just pass the word. I don’t want to forget the LaFayette volunteers. They came in and volunteered, we are looking for that LaFayette support and we are blessed to have the resources. [I hope] the impact will be that they can see that we did this — whether it was monthly, quarterly, bi-weekly or whenever.”
