Throng turns out for Feed the Need
Those who visited a program in Uniontown’s Marshall Park on Saturday got a little bit of everything, especially generosity. More than 1,000 people stopped by the park, where Faith Assembly of God in Uniontown held its second annual Feed the Need program, which provided a two-week supply of groceries to its guests.
Feed the Need, based on a national program called Convoy of Hope, featured a prayer tent, free haircuts, a job fair tent, health-care screening services and an area with activities for children.
It took about an hour for each guest to run the gamut of services, and they spent the last 15 minutes inside the ministry tent with the Rev. Don Immel.
After leaving the ministry tent, the guests were given the groceries.
Pat Coburn, secretary at Faith Assembly of God, said the church wanted to “provide for physical and spiritual needs,” and some people went directly to the prayer tent after arriving.
Coburn said about 1,065 people had attended the event as of Saturday afternoon, up from 800 last year.
“People have a tendency not to trust,” said church member Kathy Kopec. She said that last year people were “a little bit leery about coming,” because they didn’t know what the event was all about. However, publicity after last year’s event made people more aware of the program for this year, she said.
For this year’s Feed the Need, the church had an $8,000 budget, which they raised through donations from members, Coburn said. Using the raised money, one of the volunteers then bought all the food for the event.
Some church members donated their time, volunteering at the event, but outside volunteers who heard about the event and wanted to help out also contributed, said Coburn.
McDonald’s restaurant offered to help with Feed the Need after officials were asked by Faith Assembly of God to donate drinks.
“It’s great to be a part of this,” said Amber DeBolt, activities representative for McDonald’s.
Some local doctors also donated their time, including a dentist, a dermatologist to screen for cancer, a chiropractor and a massage therapist, said Coburn.
Some members of the congregation who are nurses also volunteered their time to assist in the health screenings.
Church member Vince Kopecsaid volunteers started with about 3,000 hotdogs, and it looked like they would come close to running out before the day was through.