Georgia’s hunger crisis continues to grow, and one program is turning donated deer into thousands of meals for families who need help buying food.
The Atlanta Community Food Bank reports nearly one in seven Georgians struggle to afford groceries, including one in five children. Household demand has surged with a sixty percent rise in people served in recent years.
At Willing Helpers Food Ministry in Newton County, volunteers stay busy serving free groceries to at least 300 families each month. The boxes include canned goods, produce and something many recipients do not expect: venison.
“Nothing like blessing a family with 2.5 pounds of ground venison may not have meat on the table,” said Jeff Worley of Willing Helpers Food Ministry.
Families like Wanda Blackwell’s rely on that help.
“Some people are afraid that it is gamey. No, it’s delicious,” Blackwell said.
The venison comes from Steve Bishop’s Deer Processing in Mansfield, where hunters drop off donated deer that Bishop prepares for the charity.
“The donated deer. Last year, I think we did 5,400 pounds, yep,” Bishop said.
Hunters for the Hungry leads the statewide donation effort and hopes to collect at least 140,000 pounds of venison this season.
“Oh my gosh, a lot,” said program coordinator Zoey Brown. “One dear does about 160 meals.”
Worley says some people are hesitant at first.
“Sometimes people are a little reluctant to try,” he said.
But for families trying to stretch a grocery budget while beef sells for at least nine dollars a pound, he says venison often becomes a favorite.
Blackwell said the support means everything.
“So blessed to get stuff that they don’t know where their next meal is coming from,” she said. “The Lord provides, and this ministry is a great blessing.”
