Starke County Community Services announced Wednesday that a food drive held at Five Star Marketplace in Knox raised more than $3,000 in food and monetary donations for the organization’s food pantry.
The food drive was held in conjunction with Five Star Marketplace’s Kids Day event on Saturday, September 12th.
As part of the fundraiser, five collection bins were placed at the front of the store, each representing a local community volunteer. Shoppers were encouraged to donate non-perishable food items to the bin of the volunteer they wanted to support.
The volunteer who collected the most donations was selected to receive a pie to the face as part of the event’s pie-in-the-face challenge.
A photo shared by Community Services shows Knox Mayor Dennis Estok with pie on his face, holding a sign with the amount donated to his bin: $485.
Participating volunteers included WKVI’s General Manager Lenny Dessauer, community leaders and volunteers Don Binkley, Dr. Thomas Browne, mayor Dennis Estok, and Community Services of Starke County President Michael Tolson.
Five Star Marketplace also hosted its Kids Day event that day, which featured carnival games, children’s activities, entertainment, and a bounce house.
In its Wednesday announcement, Starke County Community Services thanked Rich Gates, Five Star Marketplace, the participating volunteers, and everyone who contributed to the food drive.
The organization also expressed its appreciation for the community’s support of the food pantry.
