Golden Harvest Food Bank teamed up with Fort Gordon Christmas House (FGCH) to provide food boxes for E6 and below active-duty service members. This partnership allowed pre-registered military families to “shop” for gifts for their children while also receiving boxes of pantry stable food items through the food bank.

Families had the opportunity to choose from toys donated to FGCH by an estimated 50 organizations and over 100 individuals who contributed both toys and monetary donations. The inside of the Christmas House served as a “shopping area” set up in a retail fashion with shopping carts and shelves filled with toys and books. Once the families exited the Christmas House, Golden Harvest Food Bank staff greeted them with boxes of food and turkeys to cook for the holiday season.

“The partnership between Golden Harvest and the Fort Gordon Christmas House is simply magical,” said Naomi “Nomi” Stanton, advisor for the Fort Gordon Christmas House. “To be able to provide our soldiers and their families with everything needed for a very happy holiday season is priceless. From toys to a plentiful meal is absolutely beautiful. Gratitude is an understatement.”

Founded in the 1960s by a group of nurses who worked on base, Fort Gordon Christmas House began as a mission to bring joy and toys to military families. The group offered teddy bears as Christmas gifts to children of deployed military personnel. Over the years, FGCH has expanded to provide all qualifying military families toys, bicycles and food boxes courtesy of a partnership with Golden Harvest. This year Fort Gordon Christmas House served a total 372 families, including 627 children.

“Fort Gordon Christmas House holds a special place in our hearts and it’s important to us to support our military families,” said Amy Breitmann, President & CEO, Golden Harvest Food Bank. “These are the real heroes on the front lines, and we want to make sure that we do everything we can to show them our gratitude and appreciation.”

According to Feeding America projections as many as 160,000 active-duty enlisted service members are facing food insecurity. In a recent survey of Feeding America’s food banks, approximately half are serving active-duty military members and their families.