Each year, vacationers flock to the beautiful beaches of Ocean Isle, NC with friends and family in tow. One of the most important items on the agenda is to be sure that the vacation rental home has a well-stocked refrigerator and pantry! But at the end of week, when it’s time to bid farewell to the sand and surf, there is inevitably unopened and unused food items. Williamson Realty, a premier vacation rental agency in Ocean Isle Beach, would like to encourage all vacationers to considered donating their cabinet’s abundance to “A Second Helping”.
Step One: A Quick and Dirty Clean-Out of the Pantry
Your time at the beach is coming to an end, and it’s time to clean-up and pack-out your vacation rental. But it’s so hard to spend your last few hours of vacation cleaning, and not out in the sand! If you are ready to get the kitchen cleared out in a hurry, but don’t want to put everything straight in the trash…then please keep reading!
What if you had the opportunity to give back to the community that has shared your awesome vacation? Would you be willing to part with your leftovers?
To make this job a cinch, grab six bags, and label 2 sets of them “trash”, “donate”, and “home”. You will want two sets…one to go back in the refrigerator. Starting in the pantry or cabinet, pull out each item, one at a time. Place each item in it’s appropriate bag. This is a great job to let your little ones help with! When you are finished with the pantry, then move onto the refrigerator! “Second Blessing” will accept unopened and unexpired food, both perishable and non-perishable, from vacationers as they are leaving Ocean Isle Beach. Didn’t open that container of yogurt or that box of cereal? The food bank will be happy to pass it along to families in the community who are in need.
Before you know it, your rental kitchen will be packed up…ready for your departure. Place your cold items back in the refrigerator, but leave your non-perishable items by the door so they don’t get forgotten.
Step Two: Get Your Fantastic Donation Delivered! It’s in the Bag
On Saturday mornings, through Labor Day, you can donate your food items in two Ocean Isle locations. From 8:00am-11:00am, you can find volunteers collecting for the food bank at the parking lot at the Cross on First Street (just to the right of the Pier) and at the Museum of Coastal Carolina parking lot located on Second Street. If you need help finding either location, you are welcome to contact a staff member at Williamson Realty (800-727-9222) for further assistance. It’s so simple! All you have to do is pull up, and volunteers will take your donations! Giving back has never been so easy!
Step Three: Food Pantry Information That Will Make You A Happy Human
There are several food pantries in Brunswick County that provide assistance to local families. You may just be passing through, but that doesn’t mean you wouldn’t like the opportunity to spread some southern hospitality and love. Brunswick Family Assistance is a collaborative organization that helps low income families to live a higher quality life, through nutritional support and education. The South Brunswick Interchurch Council operates the Shallotte Area Food Pantry. They have served tens of thousands of individuals, offering three-day emergency supplies that consist of canned goods, bread, and meat. Their mission is “offering help and hope to neighbors in need.”
The Ocean Isle Food Pantry uses 100% of cash donations to purchase 5-8 pounds of food for each $1 received. Since July 2005, they have called over 170,000 pounds of food.
All of these organization think of you as their neighbors too, and love sharing their beautiful county with you. So why not help support your extended beach family with a little assistance (or a lot).
Have you ever experienced a slice of southern hospitality that would motivate you to give back to the Ocean Isle community? We would love to hear about it!
