There was a food packing party in Moss Point recently, that brought people together to help feed others. The Extra Table event engaged 100 pairs of hands to pack 10,000 meals, in less than an hour, that will go a long way to help people less fortunate than we are.
We often forget about the many folks in our communities, young and old, that do not get three meals a day, much less a nutritious one. That is the focus of Extra Table, a statewide, nonprofit food bank that is helping to fight hunger. In addition to supporting community food banks across the state, Extra Table, along with local sponsors, host packing parties that help feed people, one pack of red beans and rice at a time.
Established by Restaurateur Robert St. John in 2009, the idea was all about supporting local food banks, by providing shelf-stable food in large quantities, that can be acquired at better pricing and delivered where it is needed. Today, 63 local food banks across Mississippi receive monthly deliveries of quality foods that they need. As for the packs of red beans and rice, those meals provide local volunteer groups with opportunities to help feed people in their communities.
For Robert, a hearty plate of red beans and rice fits the bill for a nutritious meal that is easy to pack and prepare anywhere. Beans are pre-cooked and dried, and along with rice and a packet of vitamins and spices, specifically developed for Extra Table, these meals can provide four hearty portions. A pot, water, and contents are all that is needed.
So it was, that the Rotary Club of Moss Point, led by member Wayne Adkison, committed to sponsoring a packing party. With funds committed by the club, several individual club members, and Burnham’s Drugs, Extra Table scheduled an event. Along the way, the club was able to recruit 100 plus volunteers, including fellow Rotary Clubs from Lucedale, Gautier, Ocean Springs, and Pascagoula, along with others from a wide range of groups and schools.
Along with cadets from the Moss Point High School Navy JROTC program and members of St. Paul’s United Methodist Church that hosted the event, volunteers came from Chevron’s Pascagoula Refinery, Mississippi Power, Tindall Corporation, Merchants and Marine Bank, United Way for Jackson, George & Greene Counties, Community Action of South MS, Jackson County Intervention Court, Ocean Harvesters, and more.
Martha Allen Price is the Executive Director of Extra Table and directed the crowd like a pro, getting them to set up the highly coordinated assembly system, all designed by Extra Table. Once in place, with volunteers assigned to jobs along the line, the time clock and music inspired the process that included laughter and energy by all. From the initial step of placing rice, beans and a nutrient pack in a sealable bag, to sealing, and packing bags in boxes, this well-oiled team finished in 46 minutes – 10,000 bags!
Needless to say, the end of the event was bittersweet, with smiles all around and questions about when we might do it again. For the Rotary Club of Moss Point, it is not if, but when. Service Above Self is the Rotary motto and this was a great example of that, with the help of the people of the community that we serve and those of our sister Rotary Clubs in our region.
For details about sponsoring your own packing party, contact Martha at Extra Table. https://www.extratable.org/
Photos courtesy of Stacy Inlow, Donna Stewart, and Steve Renfroe