GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Most days, making people laugh and giving them a distraction from every day life is the name of the game for the Free Beer and Hot Wings morning radio show on 97.9 WGRD. But on Thursday, August 8, the focus of the show will be feeding kids in West Michigan.
From 6 a.m. to 6 p.m., the station will be going commercial-free, hoping to raise money for the nonprofit Kids Food Basket, which serves Kent, Ottawa, Muskegon and Allegan counties. During that radiothon, listeners will hear stories of the people impacted by the organization's work and they'll be encouraged to donate.
"Our goal is to raise $37,000 which is enough to fund one school to receive daily sack supper meals for an entire year," said Kids Food Basket chief operating officer Erika Abbo.
"Last year, we served about 10,000 evening meals each weekday to 60 schools across West Michigan, and so we are really just looking for the community support to continue to be able to expand that work."
Right now, Kids Food Basket works with 60 schools, but Abbo says they're only serving about 12% of the need in the community. Support from events like the radiothon could help them do even more.
"It's about knowing that, on a day-to-day basis, as children are leaving school, they can count on that meal. That meal is going to be there for them, and we are going to show up each and every day. That meal is going to go home with them, and it's going to be filled with food that they enjoy, that they've taste tested, that is kid-approved, and that is good for their bodies to really help them to be their best selves as well," Abbo said.
Kids Food Basket is 92% philanthropically funded, but if you don't have money to give to the cause, there are other ways you can help.
"You can volunteer. We have three facilities - one located in Holland, one in Muskegon, and one in Grand Rapids. Those serve the four counties. You can volunteer for an hour and a half of your day to help pack or prep meals. You can help out the farm. There are lots of different ways you can get involved," Abbo said.
"You can also donate bags, brown paper bags, that are decorated. We like to call it a touch of love. It just shows kids that we're thinking of them and that people care."