Hundreds of volunteers across Oklahoma are helping the needy. The volunteers give their time to Angel Food Ministries, a national organization providing affordable food to anyone who wants it.
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"We’ve had kids come through that couldn’t wait to get the food to eat they were so hungry,” said Rick Simmons, a volunteer at Bethesda Assembly of God in south Oklahoma City.
He and his wife, Loretta, have been overseeing the ministry for four years. "I’ve had some people come and say they haven’t had meat in months.”
Because Angel Food Ministries can purchase food in bulk directly from suppliers, a standard medium-sized box of food may be purchased for $30.
"That’s enough food for one person for a month or a family of four for a week,” Simmons said. A standard box contains staples from every food group, including chicken or beef, milk, eggs, vegetables and fruits.
Brenda Ramon, who volunteers with her husband Paul at Faith Tabernacle in Oklahoma City, said her church has had orders for as many as 100 boxes of food a month.
Simmons said his church has had orders for as many as 1,000 boxes in a single month.
"For every 100 boxes we order we get one free. We donate that one to people who really need it who don’t have money,” Simmons said.
Mark Patredis, the connecting pastor at Bethany FirstChurch of the Nazarene, said the program has touched the lives of church volunteers as well as those receiving help.
Today, Angel Food Ministries serves hundreds of thousands of families across 38 states. Since its inception in 1994, it has provided more than $95 million in direct food assistance to more than 20 million Americans.
In Oklahoma, 164 churches participate. Many are taking orders now for Christmas boxes that include a 7-pound roasting hen, a 2-pound smoked ham, trimmings and dessert.
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Did it one time, the quality was not so good, so I just give monthly to the food bank and volunteer every few weeks at the downtown Salvation Army relief center. The people who pick up food baskets there are so grateful. The fun part is that you never know what's coming in from Sysco or other distributors. Sometimes a pallet of hams come in. The looks you get from the kids is worth a thousand dollars. The people who work full time at the center are great. They sometimes hire people on work-fare programs. Even though they aren't supposed to discuss their personal life, many of them open up and reveal horrible things in their lives.
I sounds cliché, but our so-called big problems don't hold a candle. I can put up with a lot more just from sacking groceries with homeless people. The thing is that I can get in my car and drive to my home. These people walk away and find somewhere to get in for the night.
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by the numbers
Angel Food Ministries
• 1: The number of people who can be fed for a month with a medium size box of food.
• 4: The number of people who can be fed for one week with a medium box of food.
• $30: The cost of a medium size box of food.
• 40: The number of host sites in the Oklahoma City metro area that sell boxes of food.
• 164: The number of host sites in Oklahoma.
For information, go to www.angelfoodministries.com.
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I sounds cliché, but our so-called big problems don't hold a candle. I can put up with a lot more just from sacking groceries with homeless people. The thing is that I can get in my car and drive to my home. These people walk away and find somewhere to get in for the night.