CINCINNATI -- The Freestore Foodbank made an impassioned plea for $2 million in donations to help it get thousands of Tri-State families through the holiday season.
The 38-year-old charity is now asking the public to dig deeper, if they can, to offer food and money to make sure no one goes hungry during the holidays.
The Freestore says the economy has forced thousands more families to ask for help, while donations from most businesses and the food industry has remained flat over the last year.
As part of its "Hunger is Unacceptable" campaign, the Freestore hopes to raise $2 million between now and the end of the year. That's a half million dollars more than last year's goal.
It's all to make sure there will be enough of the right food available when families come looking for help for Thanksgiving, Christmas and all the weeks in between. The Freestore also provides foods for pantries and other organizations from Aurora, Indiana to Portsmouth, Ohio.
Freestore President and CEO John Young says, "We'll feed about 18,000 families, with 50,000 individuals...more than half of them will be children."
You can still donate non perishable canned foods that have high protein, like peanut butter. But the Freestore says it can actually do more with monetary donations this year.
You can make donations to the Freestore at any Kroger or Biggs checkout line. You can also donate at their Over-the-Rhine headquarters on Liberty Street or their Web site.
