VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — An annual effort to help feed people in need in our area got underway Friday.
The annual Mayflower Marathon food drive organized by two Hampton roads radio stations runs November 21-23.
Watch: 28th Mayflower Marathon raising Thanksgiving donations across the region
This is the 29th year for the event.
Friday, News 3 stopped by the donation station set up at the Lynnhaven Mall in Virginia Beach.
There are four other donation stations:
Suffolk - Kroger Market Place at 1017 University Blvd.
Tabb - Kroger at 5007-2 Victory Blvd.
Hampton - Kroger at 1050 W. Mercury Blvd. at Coliseum Central
Moyock, Nc. - Northern Outer Banks Welcome Center
All of the food collected will be given to area food banks.
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“I think the best part about this is we get to experience as foodbankers every day the ability to serve our neighbors and this is the event where we get to share that with the community," said Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore CEO Chris Tan. "That’s what makes it so special. All of these volunteers, there will be hundreds of them, get the feeling of what we get every day and it’s a gift to our work and our lives. So, it’s really special."
The food collected in Virginia Beach and Suffolk will go to the Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia and the Eastern Shore. Food collected in Hampton and Tabb will go to the Virginia Peninsula Food Bank. The food collected in Moyock will go the Food Bank of the Albermarle.
Tan believes the 2025 event is especially important.
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"The government shutdown certainly added a lot of chaos and uncertainty to the neighbors that we serve every day and added a bunch of new neighbors to our lines. The reality is, if you go without pay for 40 days plus, there are expenses that accumulate that will continue to affect your ability to provide food for your family," said Tan. "So, we're expecting that, while we saw record lines in the last two years, that will continue to grow. So it's more important now than ever."
If you want to donate but can’t get to one of the collection locations, you can donate online.
