Food Lion Store No. 214 on Tarboro Street presented a $750 gift card donation to United Way of Wilson County through the Food Lion Feeds. Store manager Matt Burke and assistant manager Danielle Toler were joined by Food Lion associates for the presentation.
The gift cards support United, We Care, a United Way program that helps Wilson County Schools students experiencing homelessness under the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act. The program steps in when local resources are unable to help and focuses on immediate basic needs, including food.
The donation is part of Food Lion Feeds, the company's hunger-relief platform established in 2014 to help nourish neighbors and address food insecurity across its 10-state operating area.
Nearly 29% of children under the age of 18 in Wilson County are food insecure, according to Feeding America's Map the Meal Gap. Students experiencing homelessness face the deepest and most urgent hunger.
Many are sleeping in motels, cars, shelters or are "doubled up" and overcrowded with relatives and other families. Housing instability and constant displacement make access to food unpredictable. Our program also follows recommendations by school social workers and McKinney-Vento staff.
We are grateful to Food Lion Feeds for their generosity and for believing that one child hungry is too many.
If you would like to know how you can contribute to the United, We Care program, contact Olivia Neeley, resource development director, at development@unitedwayofwilson.org or call 252-237-3194 ext. 3.