By: Tracy Sanders, Publisher
WOODRUFF, S.C. — What began as a day of volunteering has turned into a community-wide effort to help stock the shelves of the Woodruff Area Soup Kitchen.
Julie, owner of Peonies and Plants on Main, recently spent time volunteering at the soup kitchen, where she had an opportunity to see firsthand the need for food to help serve people in the Woodruff community.
The experience left an impression on her.
Instead of simply making a donation herself, Julie decided to reach out to other local businesses and challenge them to join her in helping meet that need.
The result is The Season of Giving Food Drive Business Challenge, a community food drive running through Nov. 23.
Local businesses are invited to become collection locations for nonperishable food. Customers, employees and residents can drop off donations at participating businesses, and Julie will collect the donated items and deliver them to the Woodruff Area Soup Kitchen.
Rather than focusing on which individual business collects the most, the effort is centered around what Woodruff’s business community can accomplish together.
The goal is to collect 1,000 pounds of food by Nov. 23.
The Woodruff Times will follow the campaign and periodically update the community on its progress toward that goal, while also highlighting participating businesses and encouraging residents to contribute.
For Julie, the effort reflects a philosophy that is already part of Peonies and Plants on Main: “Plants. People. Community. Always Matter.”
And the message behind the food drive is equally simple: neighbors helping neighbors.
Businesses interested in joining the effort or serving as a collection location can contact Peonies and Plants on Main, 240 N. Main St., Woodruff, at 864-923-3889.
