Did you find a plastic bag near your front door last Saturday? Wondering why? It was your invitation to participate in the annual food collection drive known as Scouting for Food.
Scouting for Food is the Central Florida Council of the Boy Scouts of America’s premier service project. Scouts have been mobilized in Brevard, Flagler, Volusia, Lake, Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties to collect food for those facing food insecurities in our community.
Last Saturday, November 5th, nearly 1,000 Scouts went door-to-door in Apopka delivering bags with instructions and information about the program. This Saturday, November 12th, they will be back again to pick up the bags filled with nonperishable food.
The collected food will be taken to several collection sites where if will be counted, sorted and weighed. Two of the collection sites are in Apopka: The BSA Central Florida Council HQ at 1951 South Orange Blossom Trail and Loaves and Fishes at 206 East 8th Street.
Scouts will accept donations such as tuna, peanut butter, beans, boxed or canned meals, baby food, rice, pasta, canned vegetables and fruit, and cereal. All donations should be in undamaged packaging and unexpired.
The Central Florida Council's Scouting for Food project has grown to be the second largest single-day food collection drive in Central Florida and to have donated more than 4 million pounds of food in partnership with Second Harvest Food Bank since 2007.
Last year the Scouting for Food community service project collected more than 493,000 pounds of food from all of our surrounding counties. Scouts contributed thousands of community service hours during the event.