‘March of the Mayors’ food donation drive wraps up with packing party

A month’s worth of food donations from around the Coast was loaded up today as part of the biggest packing party in the state. A nonprofit in Hattiesburg puts on this massive food drive.

Mountains of canned goods are boxed and loaded – and droves of volunteers crowd the front of Lyman Community Center.

It’s the March of the Mayors – a volunteer effort spearheaded by a coalition of cities donating food to distribute to our local pantries. Hattiesburg nonprofit Extra Table stages this event in multiple areas across the state.

Each city collects a certain product – Gulfport gathered gallons of peanut butter, Biloxi rounded up tons of tuna, and the list goes on.

Gautier Mayor Casey Vaughan believes our seaside community is a giving one. We are, after all, the hospitality state. “After Katrina we all partnered together and the relationships you build – and as you see today it brings back memories from then. We all come together, our One Coast slogan. These volunteers you might’ve never met but you feel like you’ve known them for years.”

Pass Christian Mayor Jimmy Rafferty said, “It’s all about One Coast here. I’ve met people all the way from Biloxi to Bay St. Louis. And Gautier, I’m sorry, even further to the east. But it’s amazing the amount of enthusiasm and the amount of collaboration here.”

At the end of the assembly line were the food pantries benefiting from the joint effort. In total there were 11 cities, thus 11 mayors, participating. “And part of this event today – if you are not motivated by seeing this, then I encourage you to get involved in your community.”

You can learn more about Extra Table at extratable.org.  There’s also info there about donating your time as a volunteer.