KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Administration, or 3F5, Reserve Citizen Airmen of the 403rd Wing are hosting a food drive to benefit those less fortunate in the communities surrounding Keesler Air Force Base.
During each Unit Training Assembly weekend, anyone with base access can drop non-perishable food items off at either the 403rd Mission Support Group Command Support Staff office or the 403rd Force Support Squadron command section, both in building 904 across from 403rd Wing Headquarters.
Donations will be given to a non-profit in Ocean Springs, Miss., that runs primarily on donations made by the community. The organization prepares over 3,000 meals a month feeding over 150 elderly, ill, indigent and disabled people per day.
“There’s always an influx of food drives and other donations right around the holidays, but I thought , ‘What about the rest of the year?’” said Senior Master Sgt. Rachelle Johnson, 403rd Wing 3F5 functional manager. “I thought this would be a good way to help those around us in need by helping keep the food bank stocked.”
Here is a list of examples of food items often in high demand at the organization:
- Spam
- Canned tuna
- Canned fruits
- Canned vegetables
- Canned beans
- Pasta
- Rice
In addition to food items, household and personal hygiene products such as toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, and disposable razors are accepted.
“A lot of my Airmen travel from outside of the local area for drill weekends, so it’s hard to set something up that we can all contribute to together in a weekend timeframe on top of our military duty, so this is a great opportunity for them to get volunteer experience and to be able to give back,” said Johnson.
Airman Jordyn Webb is one of those Airmen. She makes the two-hour drive from Waynesboro, Miss., once a month to serve on the command support staff for the wing where she performs an array of administrative functions such as orders processing and accountability impacting member and mission readiness.
“It gives me great honor to help provide people with things they don’t have because you never know what some is going through or what they will go through,” said Webb. “It makes me feel great to just be a help to someone and be a light to their world.”
For more information, contact Johnson at 228-376-8621, Master Sgt. Contravious Williams or Staff Sgt. Ravyn Gines, both at 228-376-8101.