Cub Scout and Boy Scouts Groups in Nutley announce Scouting for Food Scheduled March 24

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Scouting for Food is the nation’s largest single-day food drive. Scouting for Food began as a service project for the St. Louis Area Council in 1985 and was adopted by the National Organization in 1988 when one million Scouts collected an estimated 65 million cans of nonperishable food. This year marks the 31st year of this great event. Every year, thousands of scouts and adult volunteers spend two Saturdays doing a “good turn.”

On Saturday, March 24 local Boy Scout troop and Cub Scout packs (working in conjunction with the Nutley Rotary Club) will be conducting their annual food drive for the Nutley Food Pantry, which is at the Nutley Family Service Bureau Annex, 169 Chestnut Street in Nutley.

Personal care items for the care pantry at Vincent United Methodist Church will be also be accepted. Some suggestions for food donations are: stew, chili, hash, tuna, soups, chunky soups, pasta (preferably in cellophane rather that boxes), pasta sauce, rice, macaroni and cheese, canned vegetables, canned fruit, peanut butter, jelly, hot/cold cereal, coffee, tea, and baby formula/food. The pantry accepts all non-perishable groceries, but not expired cans, so please check expiration dates before donating items. Cans are easier to handle than glass jars.

The need this time of the year is especially great. During February the local pantry served over 100 families including nearly 200 children. Over 3,000 food items were required. The food pantry at the Family Service Bureau in Nutley is one of the largest in Essex County. Last year Nutley Scouts collected over 22,500 items for the food pantry according to former Commissioner Walt Smith, Pack 141 Chairman and chairman of the project. “This is always an exhausting day, but a great way to teach the Scouts, especially the young Cub Scouts the meaning of helping others”, stated Smith

The project has grown from collecting 3,405 items in 2007 to 10,653 in 2013 to 17,475 in 2016 to 22,425 last year.

The campaign was launched on "Bag Distribution Day" the weekend of March 17 when Scouts distributed bags to residences in Nutley. The Scouts return to residences on the following week, "Bag Collection Day," to retrieve the bags filled with donated non perishable items. If a scout does not contact a home, donations may be dropped off at the Ciccolini Brothers building 537 Franklin Avenue on March 24 between 10:30 AM and 2 PM.

You may also call a scout representative at 973-931-2686. Trader Joe’s and Nutley Family Service Bureau donated many of the bags for use in the drive.

After Saturday March 24, donations may be dropped off at St Paul's Church between the hours 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM. Use the covered porch on St. Paul's Place side of the church.

While the Nutley Family Service Bureau office at 169 Chestnut Street undergoes renovation groceries are being distributed out of St. Paul’s Church on Franklin Avenue.

Scouts will also be outside Nutley Park ShopRite on March 24 to accept donations from residents. Cub Scout Packs 141 and 142 along with Boy Scout Troops 147 will be participating. ShopRite is a major supporter of the event.

“We are tremendously grateful for the continued support that the Nutley Scouts and community members provide to programs like the NFSB Food Pantry. The Food Pantry has been relying on donations from this project to stock the shelves. Year after year the Scouts and those who donate help to keep it going” stated Eileen Painter, Executive Director of the Nutley Family Service Bureau. We’d like to remind Nutley residents that participation in the program is confidential. Qualification is on a case by case basis. We encourage those who are in need of food assistance to reach out and speak to a staff member at 973-667-1884 or read more about the program on our website at www.nutleyfamily.org."

Scouting for Food is the nation’s largest single-day food drive. Scouting for Food began as a service project for the St. Louis Area Council in 1985 and was adopted by the National Organization in 1988 when one million Scouts collected an estimated 65 million cans of nonperishable food. This year marks the 31st year of this great event. Every year, thousands of scouts and adult volunteers spend two Saturdays doing a “good turn.”

Across the country, in many councils and districts, thousands of troops and packs with millions of scouts involved collect tens of millions of pounds of food which is distributed to needy neighbors. Scouting for Food is the nation's largest one-day food drive, raising 15 percent of area food pantries' yearly supply and feeding the hungry in the community for three months.

Every time a Cub Scouts recites the Cub Scout pledge he promises to help others and in the Boy Scout Promise, a boy scout promises to help other people at all times. By participating in a Scouting for Food program, scouts get a step closer to fulfilling those words.