DOWNINGTOWN – It Takes a Village (Chester County) will be holding a community event March 11 at 10 am at Caln Park to build Community Food Boxes. Five boxes will be assembled by volunteers, painted by local children and artists, and placed in public parks throughout Downingtown, Caln and Coatesville where they will provide instant access to non-perishable food items and toiletries to those in need.
Michelle Terry, founder of the local charitable nonprofit noted “The boxes will provide instant and anonymous access at any time of day or night to food staples and toiletries to anyone in our community that needs them. It’s a way for us to reach out and ‘be the Village’ to really support our neighbors in need. Dedicated members of Its Takes a Village will keep the boxes cleaned, maintained and stocked once they’re installed in parks around the area.”
Downingtown Mayor Josh Maxwell was quick to sponsor the initiative, “Downingtown is known as a ‘Good Neighbor’ Community so when the folks at It Takes a Village contacted me to help, I was happy to assist. There’s a real need for this kind of thing in every community, but especially the Coatesville Area, so I was glad to hear they’d be placing them not only in Downingtown, but throughout the county.”
Caln Township Manager, Kristen Denne, noted “Caln Township is excited to take part in this generous initiative to help our local neighbors in need.”
Coatesville City Council Member, Marie Lawson, was quick to note the timeliness of the initiative. “We were planning to encourage city residents to build, stock and place boxes on their properties. The March 11 ‘box build’ is a great way for our community to kick start the event. Residents of the City of Coatesville are always looking for and willing to help others whenever possible. This initiative is the perfect kick start!”
Terry concluded by noting, “This effort would not be possible without the help of so many, Eric & Jess Lupacckino who designed the boxes and drove the project, AGS who provided raw materials, Nathan & Annawyn Laing of Habitat Studios in Downingtown who coordinated the artists, and many others who will be honored on March 11. As this is a community event, I want to extend an invitation to everyone who wants to help build the boxes or donate items to stock them. All children who attend can paint our ‘children’s mural’ box so bring the little ones and join us for refreshments, fun and community!”
For more information, about the event, please visit the It Takes a Village website at www.ittakesavillagecc.org.
