Kids & Family
the Mall in Columbia Launches Thanksgiving Food Drive for Grassroots
Non-perishable food items and donations sought for meals for individuals and families living in Howard County's shelter for the homeless.
The Mall in Columbia is hosting a Thanksgiving Food Drive on behalf of Grassroots, Howard County’s 24-7 crisis intervention center and shelter for the homeless, during November, national Hunger and Homelessness Awareness month.
The drive kick-off is set for Thursday, Nov. 10, 11 a.m., at The Carousel entrance on the second level of The Mall. Senior General Manager Mary Williams will welcome attendees, and Howard County Executive Calvin Ball and Grassroots Executive Director Mariana Izraelson will provide brief remarks. Miss Julie and the children attending Family Fun Day will participate in the event by donating food items. The public is invited to attend.
“Most of us never worry about where our next meal is coming from nor where we will spend the night. Some of our neighbors, however, live with daily anxiety about providing for their families,” said Williams. “The Mall in Columbia encourages the community to celebrate the holiday season by providing meals for our neighbors at Grassroots,” she added.
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Grassroots feeds and shelters those who have fallen through the safety net and helps them get on their feet again. In addition to food items, financial donations to Grassroots will be used to purchase meals and other items for people in the shelter programs. Donors can buy a dinner for $6 for regular meals and $10 for a holiday meal. Donate here.
Grassroots provides 24-hour crisis intervention, suicide prevention, and support to individuals and families with a mental health, substance use or homelessness crisis.
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During the last year, Grassroots served 499 people in its shelter programs and 837 individuals at the Grassroots Day Resource Center, handled 58,429 calls to its Hotline, and made 2,324 face-to-face contacts. The Mobile Crisis Team made 1,115 community responses, and 251 clients were enrolled in the Substance Use Treatment program.
Grassroots is located on Freetown Road in Columbia. For information, call 410-531-6006, or visit www.grassrootscrisis.org
