WNZR’s Marcy Rinehart talked with Scott Burgess from We Run MV about this year’s Turkey Trot. Click HERE to hear the full conversation.
The 14th Annual Turkey Trot is scheduled for Thanksgiving morning (11/28) on the campus of Mount Vernon Nazarene University. Registration starts at 8am. The race starts at 9am. Participants are asked to bring a food and/or monetary donation to benefit Food For The Hungry. Scott shares some amazing stats from the past 13 years:
Over 2,000 participants
7,600 food items collected
Over $14,000 collected
You can keep the legacy alive. Come be a part of the Turkey Trot this year!
WNZR talked with Jim Riggle, Principal of Academics, Attendance and Discipline at the Knox County Career Center.
Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click the link below.
They talked about some special fundraisers happening at KCCC to benefit Food For The Hungry. Tonight (11/21) at the Open House, there are special t-shirts sales and a dunk tank that will be raising donations. Lab competitions and the KCCC Online Themed Basket auction are coming after Thanksgiving. Jim also talks about how the FFTH slogan “Working Together to Care of our Neighbors” fits in nicely with the academic training for each lab.
Ted Buehrer is the Music Director and President of the Knox Community Jazz Orchestra. He shared some exciting news with WNZR. The group is hosting a concert to benefit Food For The Hungry. Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click the link below. Ted shared the details of this special event and invited the community to bring food and monetary donations. The concert is Friday, 11/22 at 7:30pm in Rosse Hall at Kenyon College. Ted also talked about the power of the FFTH slogan – “Working Together to Care for our Neighbors”. He shared how we are much stronger together than we are as individuals or an individual organization.
John Chidester, Director for the Public Library of Mount Vernon and Knox County shared with WNZR about their annual collection. Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click the link below. They have been supporting FFTH for decades! Food and monetary donations are being accepted through 12/13 at the libraries in Mount Vernon, Danville, Fredericktown and Gambier. This year, the library has an extra incentive for those that donate. Each time you give a donation, your name will be put into a drawing for a gift card!
Non-perishable items that are at or near their expiration dates, damaged, or in compromised containers will not be accepted. All collected food and money will be given to the 2024 Food For The Hungry Drive. Donations from each community will stay in that local community.
WNZR is honored to partner with the 43rd annual Food For The Hungry Drive. Today, The Morning Thing shared talked with Debbie Ruggles, President of Psi Iota Xi Sorority about this year’s elementary school collection. Psi Iota Xi has been involved with FFTH for 25 years!
Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click on the link below.
The collection is happening this week – 11/18 – 11/22 at all Knox County Elementary schools: Centerburg, Danville, East Knox, Fredericktown, Columbia, Dan Emmett, Pleasant Street, East, St. Vincent DePaul, Twin Oak and Wiggin Street. The Knox Learning Center and 6th Grade at Mount Vernon Middle School are also participating.
Debbie shared that there are rewards for the top collectors: – The Top Class in each school will receive a pizza party from Psi Iota Xi – The top donor from each school will be honored in the Food For The Hungry broadcast at the Knox County Memorial Building on Friday, Dec. 13. The students will be recognized on our live video stream at www.mvnu.tv, as well as on 100.9 FM and 93.7 HD2 – WMVO, with reports given on WNZR and 93.7 the Super Q.
A green flyer went home with the kids this past Friday sharing all the details. This flyer also included the Top 10 food items needed at our local pantries.
The Top 10 items needed for our local pantries include soup (pop-tops or packages), jelly, canned meals (ravioli, spaghettios, etc.), breakfast foods (cereal, oatmeal, pancake mix), canned fruit, canned vegetables, pasta/egg noodles, side dishes (boxed or packaged), peanut butter, and pasta sauce.
Though non-food donations are welcome, cash donations are encouraged because $1 donated is equivalent to $4.56 of buying power through the Mid-Ohio Collective. Checks should be made payable to Food For The Hungry. All donations collected in each school will stay in the community in which they were donated. These students are asked to demonstrate the idea that no one is too young to make a difference and that the community is better when we work together!
Follow FFTH on Facebook (@FoodForTheHungryKnoxCounty) and Instagram (@FFTHCares) to stay up to date on all things FFTH. Get involved by attending events, donating, volunteering, or even hosting your own event for FFTH! If you are hosting an event or collection, make sure to fill out the Community Event/Collection Form on the FFTH website.
To learn more about FFTH, donate, or find photos, videos, and more, visit www.FoodForTheHungryCares.org. To volunteer with FFTH, call or text Kathy Brechler at (740)-409-1866 or email Director@FoodForTheHungryCares.org.
The 2024 FFTH Live Broadcast will take place on Friday, Dec. 13 at the Memorial Theater inside the Knox Memorial. This is a Knox County tradition you won’t want to miss!
Food For The Hungry—Working together to care for our neighbors.
Reporters Cheryl Splain and Grant Richey stopped by the WNZR Studios to share about their recent trip to Sherwood, Oregon. This trip is part of their Intel Project – Beyond the Chip. Click HERE or access the link below to hear the full conversation.
They talked about the places they visited in Sherwood, along with local officials they had a chance to interview. Cheryl and Grant shared some of their findings and lessons learned by the Sherwood community. The reporters shared with us some of the “next steps” they have discovered for Knox county officials as we approach the opening of the Intel plant.
You can connect with their stories at www.knoxpages.com or HERE More stories are coming the week of 11/18. Knox Pages is working on a Beyond the Chip newsletter. They are also planning a community event in February to share their findings with the public.
WNZR is proud to partner with Knox Pages on this project.
Captain Christine Moretz shared an exciting ministry update with WNZR. Construction is underway for a new childcare center in our community! Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click on the link below.
She explained how they discovered the need for childcare and decided to build this facility. Christine shared an overview of the facility that will be added to the area that they call “Salvation Square.” This new building is a 13,270 square foot childcare center, that also allows for 36 additional slots for an after-school program. A total of 112 children will be cared for daily in this facility, named “The Salvation Army Learning Lighthouse!”
She listed the areas and facilities in this center that will be used for educational and recreational programs. There will also be renovations made to their existing social services building to better serve those in need in the community!
Christine also shared the timeline for this building project with WNZR. Construction is planned to finish in October 2025, with the childcare center to open in January 2026! Their campaign goal is $6.25 million dollars, and about $4.9 million dollars has been pledged by generous organizations. You can support this campaign at www.salarmy.us/LightTheDay
Christine also shared about the many ways to get involved with raising funds for the Salvation Army this Christmas Season! Kettle Kickoff is Tuesday, November 26th at noon at the Salvation Army! You can keep an eye out for red kettles accepting donations around town, or volunteer to ring a bell.
The community Thanksgiving Dinner will be November 27th at the Salvation Army, and you can volunteer for that event as well.
MVNU’s Cross Country Coach, Simon Taylor stopped by WNZR to chat about the team and an exciting event.
Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click on the picture below.
The team is hosting the “Before the Bird” 5K Run and Walk on Saturday, November 16th! Registration is from 8:15am – 8:45am Race starts at 9am Where – MVNU Campus Chapel.
All proceeds from the event are donated to MVNU Cross Country.
The Morning Thing was excited to have several special guests on Monday’s show. Representatives from Place 4 Grace stopped by the studio to share a ministry update and a very exciting announcement.
Click HERE to hear the full conversation or click the link/picture below.
The BIG NEWS is that Place 4 Grace has hired House Parents! This is an answer to many years of prayers. Samantha and Austin Beckett have taken on this call and talked about how God directed them to be a vital part for the future of the ministry.
Kandee Popham, Executive Director also shared the history of Place 4 Grace and how they have been serving Mommas and babies in our community.
Hosanna Swartz, Community Outreach Manager also joined us to talk about how Place 4 Grace is funded. She shared about p4g Thrift Boutique and how this outreach is supporting Mommas, babies and the overall ministry.
We also shared an update from last Friday’s Flannel Fest fundraiser. You can still make a donation to Flannel Fest at http://www.place4grace.com/ff2024
Follow them on Facebook and Instagram – place 4 grace and p4g Thrift Website – http://www.Place4Grace.com Phone – 740-847-2232 Email – info@place4grace.com
It is Food For The Hungry Kickoff Day! Today, we celebrate a legacy of giving that started in 1982. 2024 marks the 43rd Anniversary of this incredible campaign.
WNZR’s Marcy Rinehart talked with the new Food For The Hungry Executive Director, Kathy Brechler and Olivia Stern, Digital Content and Marketing Director. Click HERE to hear the full conversation.
The ladies covered many topics about this year’s drive:
2024 Drive Goal of $330,000
Why the goal has increased
The power of $1.00 at the Mid Ohio Food Collective ($1.00 – $4.56)
The Value of volunteers and how you can get involved
This is a local effort and donations stay right here in Knox County
Upcoming events to support the campaign
Summer Grant Program (15 local organizations received grants for a total of $29,500)
Top 10 needed food items
Healthy Donation Guide
How to stay connected
The ladies also shared powerful stories of how residents have been impacted by these donations. They also shared about their summer visits to several of our local pantries that benefit from FFTH.
Your generosity is astounding each year and we believe this will be another fantastic season of giving to support the FFTH mission of alleviating hunger in Knox County. We invite you to get involved! Donate, Volunteer, Host an Event/Collection, or Attend an Event!
Rise and Shine 