By Staff
CASSOPOLIS - Thanks to the outstanding efforts of several local 4-H clubs, Cass County Farm Bureau will far outdistance its donation this year to a well-loved Michigan charitable organization.
For two years now Michigan's county-level Farm Bureaus have donated thousands of pounds of food toward Michigan Farm Bureau's Harvest Gathering, an effort to stock shelves at the state's four Ronald McDonald Houses.
Cass County MSU Extension youth agent Neil Kentner helped rally the participation of seven local 4-H clubs, with Farm Bureau putting up monetary awards for the three largest donations.
With a total donation of 441 individual food items, the Kids-n-Kids club earned the $100 first-place prize. JOY 4-H collected 390 items to take home second place and $75 in prize money. Third place and a $50 prize went to North Red Hill, which gathered 292 items.
In the end, the total donation tipped the scales at 1,100 pounds, dwarfing the county's 47-pound donation toward last year's Harvest Gathering.
That puts Cass County in early contention for bragging rights among Michigan's 67 county-level Farm Bureaus. Last year's largest donation was a 1,278-pound contribution from the Lenawee County Farm Bureau.
In 2003, Michigan Farm Bureau members donated a combined total of more than 13,200 pounds of non-perishable food to help stock the cupboards of Michigan's four Ronald McDonald Houses, located in Grand Rapids, Lansing, Ann Arbor and Detroit.
Strategically located near major hospitals, Ronald McDonald Houses provide the families of ill children a place to stay while their youngsters are hospitalized.
The houses are not staffed by cooks, but thanks to the efforts of Michigan Farm Bureau members and staff, their kitchens are fully stocked with everything necessary to prepare a comforting, home-style meal.
Participating county Farm Bureaus this year will amass their collections at Michigan Farm Bureau's 85th annual meeting Nov. 30-Dec. 3 at the Grand Traverse Resort in Acme.