Local

Johns Creek church boxes 100,000 meals for typhoon-hit Philippines

NORTH FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A local church boxed 100,000 meals in four hours Sunday for the organization Stop Hunger Now and some of those meals are expected to go straight to the Philippines.

Nearly 600 volunteers showed up at the Johns Creek at the United Methodist Church to make it happen. They packed bags of freeze-dried rice casserole that will feed six people, and some of the boxes are expected to go to help the typhoon victims.

"Do something bigger than ourselves, baseball teams, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, youth group, children, parents," said Brian Funderburke, with JCUMC.

Two groups of 300 volunteers packaged the meal, weighed and sealed them, and then boxed them to be shipped.

A gong alerted the crowd after 1,000 meals had been packed. Michael Ashley said 90 percent of the meals his organization provides to the hungry go to schools. Ten percent is used for crisis need. Stop Hunger Now has pledged 1 million meals to the Philippines to feed typhoon victims and a local shipment is about to head that way.

"We're being told there is a container leaving Atlanta, and it's high likely these meals will be headed to the Philippines," Ashley said.

The church also donated 40 water filters to the typhoon-ravaged country. It's been raising money for some time to buy the meals for this day.

Andrew Wills, 14, has been a part of the entire process.

"I'm so lucky to have food and clothes at home," Wills said.

One of the church members was stranded in the Philippines during the typhoon. She saw the devastation first hand. She couldn't make it to the event Sunday, but Funderburke said she made one of the larger financial contributions to buy the food.