Submitted photo. Eric Strimple and other Eudora Lions Club volunteers hang fliers and bags on Eudora homes last Saturday. This Saturday volunteers will retrieve the filled bags starting at 9 a.m.
Local Scouts and volunteer groups will collect bags of food across the city this Saturday for the 34th annual Scout for Food.
The Eudora Lions Club joins the roster of volunteers, which include Eudora 4-H, Eudora High School National Honor Society, St. Paul United Church of Christ and Eudora United Methodist Church.
Each volunteer group has a designated zone in the city, and the groups hung flyers and bags on every household’s door last Saturday. Eudorans had one week to gather supplies and are expected to put their filled bags outside by 9 a.m. this Saturday for collection.
The collected food will go to the Eudora food pantry at the St. Paul United Church of Christ.
Scout for Food started as a regional Boy Scouts event in 1988. John Scott, a committee member of Eudora Boy Scout Troop 64, has been the event coordinator since its inception. Scott said as Eudora has grown, so have the number of volunteers and organizations who participate in the event, including the Girl Scouts and Cub Scouts.
“It was a very good project that’s been going for many years,” Scott said.
The Eudora Lions Club joined the event this year because the pandemic made many of its other events impossible. Eric Strimple, the club’s secretary, said Scout for Food was the perfect event for Lions to join for a few reasons. The Lions Club is the charter organization for the Scouts. Furthermore, the contactless event is COVID-friendly and allowed the club to serve one of its five core values: hunger.
“It was just a good fit to get involved with the food drive this year,” Strimple said.
Scott said the event was not permitted by the county last spring because of the pandemic, but by November, the troops were allowed to host the annual event. Scott said the pandemic put a strain on many families, and he believes others saw the importance of the event more than ever.
Volunteers last fall collected 6,528 food items, according to Scott, which doubled the 3,000 item average the event usually sees.
“Everybody in Eudora knew that there was a need, and they participated more than they have in the past,” Scott said.
Troop 64 Scoutmaster Jim Lord said the troops this year are just excited to get outside for an event. Many of the Scouts use this event for service hours that lead to rank advancement.
Scott said he expects to collect around 3,000 food items this Saturday. Lord estimated about 50% of Eudora households participate in the event. He said some will donate a few food items and others will fill several bags.
“Any piece helps,” Lord said.
Regardless of turnout, Scott said the event pulls together the whole community and allows them to help one another.
“We’re all working together to help some of our neighbors who need our help,” Scott said. “And that means a lot to all of us.”
Reach reporter Cami Koons at [email protected].
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