The final results are in for the week-long food drive conducted by the Chattanooga Fire Department for the Chattanooga Area Food Bank. The drive was conducted from Aug. 16-22, but extra time was added to allow for late donations. The grand total this year came to 7,492 pounds of food. That's up from the 5,789 pounds collected last year.
The firefighter food drive incorporates a competition to see which fire station (and the community it serves) can collect the most food. Station 19 beat out the other 16 Chattanooga fire stations by collecting 2,641 pounds of food.
Fire Chief Randy Parker was grateful for the donations contributed by the public. "Abba's House and many others in the Hixson community responded enthusiastically to this food drive," Chief Parker said. "We appreciate all the food that was donated across the city, because we know it's going to families in our area who really need it."
A plaque was presented to the firefighters at Station 19 in Hixson.
Since the demand is up, additional donations of non-perishable food items to the Food Bank would still be appreciated. For more information on what's needed, visit the Food Bank online at www.chattfoodbank.orghttp://www.chattfoodbank.org, or give them a call at 622-1800.