Food insecurity impacts many people in the Northern Virginia community. Rising costs of living and the end of federal benefit programs strain families, making it harder to put food on the table. But together, we can make a powerful difference!
Northern Virginia Family Service (NVFS) needs your help this fall. To relieve food insecurity in our community, NVFS is hosting a fall food drive. In this blog, we will share our toolbox of tips for how you can engage your networks and host a food drive so your community can help NVFS’ food drive so that, together, we can help make sure our neighbors have the food they need to thrive.
NVFS Fall Food Drive: Ending Hunger Together
NVFS hosts a food drive each fall to help stock the shelves at our Hunger Resource Center (HRC). Our HRC provides food to nearly 400 families each month, distributing over 46,000 pounds of food monthly. There are many ways to get involved in this life-saving initiative.
Donate food in person: Our most-needed items include canned fruit and vegetables, canned meat and fish, beans, soup, pasta, rice, peanut butter, cereal, and more. We also encourage donations of gluten-free, low-sodium, and low-sugar items. Visit our webpage for the drop-off times, location, and for more information.
Donate food online: Can’t make it to a drop-off? You can send shelf-stable food directly to us! Shop our You Give Goods wishlist.
Donate funds online or by check: Food is our most needed item, but funds give us flexibility. You can send your gift to us online or by check to help us purchase the items we need most.
Volunteer: We need volunteers to help sort, pack, and distribute food. Volunteer opportunities are available from mid-October through early November. If you’re interested, email Navara Cannon so you, or your group, can help: ncannon@nvfs.org
Using creative and effective food drive ideas can significantly impact your community and help those in need. This blog provides ways for you to help NVFS during our annual food drive.
Host a Food Drive at Your Organization
Now that your organization, church, club, or scout group is ready to host a food drive to help NVFS, here are some tips to ensure its success:
- Partner with other local organizations: Collaborate with other local businesses and organizations. A joint effort can bring in more donations and expand the impact of your event. Does your organization have vendor partners that can join the effort?
- Engage with your customers or organization members: Local businesses can help promote a food drive and serve as donation drop-off points. You might also offer discounts or special promotions to those who contribute. Promote your food drive with flyers and emails to your employees and customers. You can also find an NVFS flyer here that makes a great email attachment.
- Use drop-off buckets: Consider using your organization as a drop-off location and posting the campaign on your social media pages.
- Make it competitive: Create a friendly competition by forming teams within your business, organization, church or club and seeing who can donate the most. Offer a prize to the team that collects the most non-perishable food or funds. Set goals and track progress: Use visual tools like a fundraising thermometer to show your team how close they are to reaching your food drive goals.
- Leverage social media: Market your food drive on social media and encourage your employees, club members, congregation, and vendors to share the posts. Share posts by NVFS to your followers and let them know you are active in the Northern Virginia community. (You can find NVFS on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn)
- Involve local celebrities: Get local figures—musicians, athletes, or chefs—to help promote your participation in the NVFS food drive. Their involvement can draw more attention and inspire others to contribute.
Host a Food Drive In Your Neighborhood
If a large-scale food drive feels overwhelming, consider organizing a smaller effort within your neighborhood, your block, or with a group of your friends and family. These localized drives are still highly effective and can be easier to manage. A neighborhood food drive is a great way to include kids and teach volunteerism. 
Choose a theme: Give your drive a catchy and meaningful theme like “Hunger Heroes” or “Fighting Hunger Together.” A themed food drive can motivate participation and give your event a unique touch. Looking for a unique theme that grabs attention? Browse food drive themes and ideas on Pinterest.
Host a Block Party: Turn your food drive into a fun neighborhood event! Encourage neighbors to bring donations while enjoying food, music, and games. This builds camaraderie while working toward a common goal. A block party is fun for any age group when you plan games for kids, too.
Scavenger Hunt Food Drive: This idea is perfect for neighborhood kids and is a lot of fun. Make the process interactive by creating a list of needed food items and assigning points to each. Neighbors can form teams and compete to collect the most points by finding and donating these items.
Engage Kids with a Craft Competition: Here is another idea that will engage the kids in your neighborhood. Tie your fall food drive to a neighborhood craft project and competition. Encourage neighborhood kids to decorate collection boxes to show support for the community. Have prizes for the best decorated boxes. (And volunteers at the Hunger Relief Center will love seeing all of the decorated boxes, full of non-perishable food, arrive at NVFS.)
Trick or Treat So Others Can Eat: Celebrate Halloween early but replace candy with doing good for the community. Prep your neighborhood ahead of time with flyers to let them know what you and your kids are doing and go door to door (or trunk to trunk) Trick or Treating for canned goods and other shelf-stable foods. Be sure to tag us on your social media posts! You could also host a Halloween party and everyone can trade their food items for candy or gift bags. This teaches “community” while providing a fun night in the neighborhood.
Check out our webpage with helpful information and a toolkit to help you or your organization host a food drive in your community so, together, we can make sure our neighbors get enough healthy food to eat.
Remember, although food drives are often associated with the holidays, food insecurity is a year-round issue.
Food insecurity remains a persistent challenge in Northern Virginia. Still, with your help, we can alleviate hunger and strengthen our community. Whether you plan a food drive, donate, or volunteer, your efforts will go a long way in helping families thrive.
Want to learn more about food insecurity in Northern Virginia? Read these two recent blogs about food insecurity in our region:
Northern Virginia Business Can Help Alleviate Food Insecurity