Saturday, many of the homes in Hawkins County received a white shopping bag on their doors from the Boy Scouts of America.  These bags are your invitation to participate in the national "Scouting for Food" food drive November 8th through the 15th.  To be a part, you need to simply place food in these bags and place them back on your porches by 8 am this Saturday, November 15th.

    The Boy Scouts of America annually collect millions of pounds of food for food banks and food pantries around the country.  Sequoyah Council which comprises 16 East Tennessee and Virginia counties expects to bring in over 200,000 pounds of food.   The Cub Packs and Boy Scout Troops in Hawkins County have been collecting about 17,000 pounds of that amount which makes this the county's largest food drive each year.

    Expectations are high this year even with the economy hitting a slump in recent weeks.  Readers are reminded many people simply look through cupboards taking out canned good items they have bought and not used or some due to doctors have been given restricted diets  allowing them to glean from foods they can no longer eat. 

     The best food items are canned goods and dry foods like macaroni and cheese, noodles, cereals, and other breakfast items.  Scouts remind readers too that all donated food items are reported in national figures, but are donated locally to food pantries to benefit our own community during the holiday season and the winter months that follow. 

submitted by Sheldon Livesay