Food Kits Feed Everyday Families With Angel Food Ministries

Food Kits Feed Everyday Families With Angel Food Ministries

By Jennifer Currence Stupp, jen@ospreyobserver.com

Local families of four can eat nutritiously for just $30 a week.If it sounds too good to be true, visit www.AngelFoodMinistries.com and see for yourself. There, readers will find a list of the contents found in a box of groceries, including nutritional meats, vegetables, starches and fruits. The products found in the “signature box” change monthly.Interested parties can go online, locate their nearest host site and order their box of food to be picked up at a certain date. Prices are kept to a minimum because of the organization’s gross buying power and low overhead. In addition to the $30 box of pre-selected food, consumers may purchase individual meat or fresh fruit and vegetable “specialty” boxes at a lower price. “The value of the $30 box can run anywhere between $45-$60,” says Kim Broom, Angel Food Ministries director at Life Church in Lithia. For seniors or people on the go, a “convenience box” is available with 10 already prepared meals for $28. Each pre-packaged meal contains 3 oz. of protein, a starch and two vegetables or fruit. There is also a frozen and dry mix allergen-free food box created especially for people with food allergies.Angel Food Ministries began as the brainchild of pastors Joe and Linda Wingo in 1994 to help feed their neighbors in northeast Georgia after several textile mills had closed. What began with 34 families in one region, now feeds hundreds of thousands of people nationwide. “It’s a great way to impact our community,” says Broom. Broom says her church chose to host the program because it helps everybody. There are no forms or applications to complete and no requirements to meet in order to order a box of food. “Some people buy a box to help others, some buy them for themselves,” says Broom. Because Angel Food Ministries is a non-profit organization, food purchased to provide to a family in need can be listed as a tax-deductible donation.“Our mission is to reach out to anyone in need,” states the Website. Local host sites for Angel Food Ministries are River of Life Christian Center at 6605 Krycul Ave. in Riverview: 677-4453, Cookson Hills Family Ministries at 131 New Legacy Dr. in Seffner: 681-1942; and Life Church of FishHawk at 6420 Lithia Pinecrest Rd. in Lithia: 681-6503.