This Sunday, Delaware County EMS, the Tri-Township Fire Department, the City of Delaware Fire Department, and Meijer will team up to host a charity food drive to benefit People In Need, Inc. of Delaware County Ohio.
The “Fill the Medic” drive will be held Nov. 24 at the Meijer on Sunbury Road in Delaware from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. During the drive, an ambulance unit and other units, as well as firefighters and personnel, will be on hand to accept items for the People In Need (PIN) food bank.
Jeff Fishel, director of Delaware County EMS, said he had done a similar event at a previous job and found it was successful, as well as a good way to give back.
“The staff and employees really enjoyed getting engaged and going above and beyond and helping out the community,” he said. “It gave us time to interact with the community at large, and overall, it was a successful event that a lot of people had a good time participating in.”
Fishel added there are many fundraisers and charity drives in the next month, but he wanted to make sure that families aren’t forgotten this Thanksgiving.
“At the end of the day, there’s a lot of individuals who, come Thanksgiving, are not going to be able to afford the meals for their families,” Fishel said. “We wanted to do something about that and help those people out in their time of need. We figured we’re public service and we have a decent platform where we are visible to the public. We felt like we could do some good and help these families that could use a little bit of help.”
He added the Delaware County EMS public relations team reached out to the City of Delaware, Tri-Township, and Meijer hoping to find other partners willing to collaborate for the event.
City of Delaware Fire Inspector Blaise Stojkov said the city jumped at the opportunity to help and engage with the community.
”We are always looking for a chance to work harmoniously with all the other organizations, especially when it comes to public events and appearances,” Stojkov said. “Any time we get out in the public not for call related items, it’s always good to have that exposure, too. People see we’re accessible. They get a chance to ask us questions. A lot of times, we’re tucked in our stations and we don’t come out unless people need us for calls.”
Tri-Township Fire Chief Troy Morris said his department is excited to be able to lend a hand to PIN and the community.
“The biggest thing we’re after is anything we can do to help People In Need,” Morris said. “Having Meijer on-board gives us the opportunity to maybe catch some people when they are right there and don’t have to think about it. It’s all about giving back a little bit. The community has always been good to us, so we’d like to be able to give a little bit back to them and see what we can do.”
Morris said this is the first event with all three agencies, and he’s hoping for a good turnout.
“With it being a new event, you hope it goes over right and works right,” he said. “This is the first year for a food drive where we all partner up. We’re going to see what happens. We’re looking forward to getting this running and getting good participation from everybody.”
Fishel said he’s proud of all the cooperation that’s gone into the event, and he’s thankful for the management at Meijer.
“You’re always stronger together,” he added. “The more people that come together, the bigger and more successful it is. City of Delawre and Tri-Township jumped at the opportunity to collaborate. We feel like it’s going to be very big and very successful. At the end of the day, that’s the whole reason, and we are excited about the impact this will have on People in Need.”
