The spirit of giving is alive and well throughout Sumner and Robertson Counties, as local food banks, charitable organizations, and community-driven initiatives come together to ensure no one goes hungry, especially during the holiday season.

Many families in both counties face financial challenges year-round; however, additional challenges are often presented during the holidays. For households already struggling to make ends meet, the added pressure of holiday meals, gifts, and rising utility costs can make it difficult to provide for loved ones. This is where local food banks and support services often step in, offering both immediate relief and long-term solutions.

Organizations and events such as the Food Drive hosted by Temple Baptist Church in White House, Feed Sumner, a ministry of First Baptist Church in Hendersonville, and the Hands of Hope Food Pantry in Portland are crucial resources, stepping up their efforts during the holiday season to ensure our neighbors in need have access to nutritious food and other essential services. These organizations offer meal distributions and holiday assistance programs to help underserved families celebrate with warmth and abundance.

Since 2013, Temple Baptist has been delivering 500 to 700 Thanksgiving meals annually to members of the White House community, although the Food Drive began many years earlier as a ministry to area nursing homes and senior living facilities.

Becky Jenkins, Director of Temple’s Children’s Ministry, organizes the drive annually and has witnessed a significant increase in requests for assistance over the years.

“I grew up in White House and I would never have thought that this was a need here, but just like everywhere else, there are people who are hungry and hurting and they don't know how to ask for help,” Becky says. “Our goal is to provide the food and feed their souls a little bit.”

Filling 500 to 700 plates and delivering them to area residents might seem a daunting task, but as luck would have it, Temple Baptist’s Food Drive attracts an army of volunteers who happily assemble every year.

“We usually have 200 people show up to fill the plates and boxes,” says Becky. “I've often heard people say, ‘Why don't you just fill the boxes beforehand and we just can pick them up?’ The answer is because we want our volunteers to have some investment in their box. They fill each plate and assemble every box, then they deliver them. We have people return every year and deliver to the same people. It really is a great experience for everyone involved.”

While Temple Baptist is finishing up this year’s Thanksgiving Food Drive, First Baptist Hendersonville’s Feed Sumner initiative is working around the clock to distribute food and provide support to those who need it most. The ministry partners with other local organizations to gather and distribute food donations, ensuring that they serve as many people as possible.

According to Daniel Stephens, First Baptist Hendersonville’s Director of Community Ministry, “A person should never have to be wonder where their next meal is coming from — especially on Thanksgiving. We have been fortunate to see many Thanksgiving food distributions over the past couple weeks, with over 700 people receiving meals. We realize we can’t meet every single need in Sumner County, but if we partner, we can get much closer to meeting the needs.”

Over the past 15 months, Feed Sumner, along with partners including Gallatin Cares, Unlimited Potential, and Hands of Hope, have served over 15,000 people. To put it in perspective, that’s the approximate size of Portland.

“Several months back, Second Harvest put out a statistic that one out of eight people in Tennessee are struggling with food insecurity,” explains Daniel. “Several thousand of those people are in our county. If you do the math based on our current county population, it’s actually closer to 24,000. No matter the statistic, no person should have to live wondering where they will get their next meal.”

One of Feed Sumner’s primary partners is Hands of Hope Food Pantry in Portland, which operates as a free grocery store for individuals and families experiencing food insecurity. Julie Yant, Director of Hand of Hope, describes how the pantry operates.

“It's a very dignified experience,” says Julie. “Folks get to come in and pick out exactly what their family needs or wants, so they feel like they're just at a grocery store. It's based on family size and the only requirement is that they are Sumner County residents, so they do have to bring proof of current residency in Sumner County.”

Hands of Hope currently serves over 500 families a month, a figure that represents over 2,200 individuals.

“People are surprised that there are hungry citizens in our community but it’s very easy to get into a position where you might need a little bit help,” adds Julie. “It’s not just about the food — it’s about showing people that their community cares, that they’re not alone.”

As the holiday season is in full swing, it’s clear that the true spirit of the season is reflected in the way these organizations come together to help their neighbors. Their generosity is a testament to the strength and resilience of the communities they represent. By coming together to support those in need, we can ensure that every family is able to experience the joy of the season with full hearts and full plates.