The Boy Scouts of America invite you and your neighbors to support your local food pantries on Saturday, November 12th this fall. Smiling Scouts will greet you while you shop at local grocery stores in the Inland Empire communities from Grand Terrace and Loma Linda to Banning Pass along the I-10 corridor, as well as within San Bernardino and Highland below the mountains. Mountain Scout units will be out too in Lake Arrowhead, Blue Jay, and Crestline. “Scouting for Food” has been an annual “Good Turn” community service program performed by Scouts of all ages in the California Inland Empire Council since 2001.
On that day between 8 AM and 4 PM, uniformed Scouts will distribute a printed list of suggested food items most needed by area service agency’s food pantries to store patrons as they enter. As patrons exit the store, you may present the donated items to a smiling Cub or Boy Scout and the food will be collected for delivery to the participating agencies. Collected food will be delivered to several local community agencies by Scouts, their parents, and adult Scout leaders of the Gray Arrow District, California Inland Empire Council, and Boy Scouts of America. The Young Marines sponsored by the Redlands Elks Lodge will join us again this year for this year’s community service their third year.
Collected food items are distributed to food pantries of local non-profit agencies including the San Bernardino and Redlands Salvation Army Service Offices, the Family Service Association of Redlands, its Yucaipa Outreach Project, as well as Yucaipa Family Assistance, and H.E.L.P. Inc. in the Banning Pass. In addition, donated food items are given to the Inland Empire Ronald McDonald House in Loma Linda for the 5th year with their unique food and family list of needs. In the mountain communities, Operation Provider supports families in need with the help of our scouting units. These agencies all provide emergency assistance that includes food distribution and other needed services to needy or disadvantaged and transitional families.
The Gray Arrow District Boy Scouts and Young Marines will be collecting primarily non-perishable food items from shoppers in these communities at participating grocery store entrances. Selected Stater Bros., Albertsons, and Vons are the larger participating grocery stores in the greater San Bernardino Valley up into Banning Pass areas. The family-owned Gerrards store in Redlands continues to support this storefront donation effort as well as Jensens in the mountains. Redlands’ Sprouts will be donating some items directly to the Boy Scout service project leaders. Please encourage your families, friends, and neighbors to help the Scouts do a meaningful “Good Turn” for your communities by donating food items intended for needy families that reside in your local communities, especially during this economic inflationary time impacting all residents.
Scouting has been building character and developing leaders for over a century in this country. Since its beginning in England in 1910, Scouting has been developing character in youth worldwide. If you have any questions in respect to our “Scouting for Food” program, please contact Ed Lucas, our Gray Arrow District “Scouting for Food” Chairman for 2022 at either edmech02@msn.com or his Cell: (951) 906-3713.