Five win in Bread Shed beef package raffle

The freezers of five lucky Bread Shed’s Beef Package Raffle ticket holders are fuller this holiday season, but the big winner is the non-profit’s budget.

Winners are M. Anderson, Jo Lewis, Wayne Berry, K.W. Holdings and Alan Akin.

The beef was donated by Mike Legrand of Legrand Feed and Serra McCabe of Greener Pastures Angus. Each package also included a Boston butt provided by John 3:16.

The Bread Shed always is looking for volunteers and donations to keep helping others.

The program, the Bread Shed Board Member Jim Ward said, is “a way for us to bring hope and encouragement and share Jesus. The food is not what we do … the food is just the vehicle we use to try to reach our neighbors.”

The Bread Shed, located at 203 North D St., offers a variety of services and resources to area residents.

The volunteers have a diaper distribution the second Thursday of each month, said Ward. The diapers are purchased by the Bread Shed at a discounted rate. When available the group gives out produce, milk, baby cereal and a “new mother’s packet,” donated by Walgreens. When available the packet contained items such as children’s shampoo and pacifiers.

Ward said, “every time they have milk available (at the SEMO Food Bank) … if we can get it, let’s give it out.”

Volunteers who expected to serve 50 children each month, were surprised the first month when 145 showed up, and the numbers have grown to close to 500 coming for diapers monthly, Ward said.

Many weeks this year, produce boxes from the giveaway “Farmers for Families on Fridays” were shared to about 600 families.

Each Sunday volunteers cook a hot meal for the public. Ward said, “ … We started out serving like 40 people” 10 years ago.

The second Saturday of the month for the past 10 years, a food distribution has been held at the Bread Shed’s building, Ward said.

Fundraisers like the Bread Shed’s Beef Package Raffle help finance the organization’s various projects.

More information about the organization can be found on its website, www.breadshed.org, or its Facebook page, where announcements about upcoming distribution events are shared.