- Food insecurity is a huge concern amongst the senior community in the Big Bend.
- A benefit concert drew hundreds of neighbors with food donations to help tackle the problem.
- Watch the video to learn how this community effort will help ensure local seniors don't go hungry this holiday season.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
When the holidays roll around, the extent of food insecurity in our neighborhoods becomes even more apparent. Part of the nearly three million food-insecure Floridians are seniors in the Big Bend. I'm Kenya Cardonne in the College Town neighborhood where neighbors came together to tackle that lack of access to food with the power of music.
'Rhapsody of Thanks' — that's what Tallahassee Community Chorus named Sunday's performance of musical pieces celebrating the theme of Thanksgiving.
The hundreds of neighbors on the stage put their talents together for the seniors in our community who might have a hard time celebrating due to food insecurity.
Nicole Ballas, Chief Development Officer of Elder Care Services - "As you age, you can kind of become more isolated with mobility issues or health concerns, and it can be really hard for you to get out to other people."
Elder Care Services is a local nonprofit dedicated to helping seniors get the care they need through different programs like 'Meals on Wheels' and their food pantry.
Over the last year, they say they've seen a 30% increase in demand. That means it takes more to keep it stocked.
Ballas - "It runs on community donations so we can't do that without groups like this."
Maclain Hardin-Kurza, Executive Director of Tallahassee Community Chorus - "We have a lot of senior citizens in our chorus. Many of them utilize the services that Elder Care provides, either for themselves or for a family member and so we knew right away that they were an organization that we wanted to partner with."
Dedicating this performance to Elder Care Services, the chorus asked the audience to come to the show with all the canned goods and non-perishable foods they could spare.
The donations will go straight onto the food pantry's shelves— a gift from the community that Elder Care tells us will help make sure our local seniors don't go hungry this holiday season.
Ballas - "It really means so much for those seniors who know that the community has thought about them, that the community cares about them and that they are in their minds all throughout the year, but definitely the holiday season as well."
This was the first of three concerts that will each benefit a local nonprofit organization. Tallahassee Community Chorus tells us their Spring concert will benefit Humble House Ministries.
In College Town, Kenya Cardonne, ABC 27
