The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Volunteers pack over 300,000 meals
Johnny Stone, a member of the Dunwoody United Methodist Church, attended a national conference in 2009 where attendees completed a Rise Against Hunger meal pack. Inspired by the effort, he wanted to bring the program back to DUMC.
Stone’s vision teamed with DUMC came to life when Rise Against Hunger opened its offices in Atlanta in 2010. That same year DUMC completed its first Rise Against Hunger meal pack and volunteers packed 31,000 meals.
Eight years and 15 meal packing events later, the partnership between DUMC and Rise Against Hunger contin- ues to make quite the impact. On Aug. 11, more than 1,000 volunteers from DUMC and Simpsonwood United Meth- odist Church gathered at the DUMC campus in Dunwoody for FoodStock 2018. They packed 313,416 meals bringing total to 2.5 million over the course of the partnership.
“Our packaged meals support children’s attendance at school, incentivize adults to learn a new trade or bolster clinics and their patients’ health in order to bring about holistic and transformational development in each of their lives,” said Kevin Magee, man- ager of Faith-Based Global Partnerships at Rise Against Hunger.
There will be another meal packing event for Rise Against Hunger at DUMC’s 2018 Great Day of Service on Oct. 20. The community can come to pack meals and perform other service projects in Dunwoody and surrounding areas.
When asked what the best part of the packing event was, Director of Missions Chris Mixer shared, “It was wonderful to see people of all ages and backgrounds work harmoniously together and unite for a common cause. Serving others can be a joyous social event, and significant change is possible when we all work together.”