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| (From left to right) Transit Services Division Chief Carolyn Biggins, MCDOT Director Al Roshdieh, County Executive Ike Leggett and Manna Food Executive Director Jackie DeCarlo kick off Give and Ride with their own food donations. |
Passengers
on Montgomery County Department of Transportation’s Ride On bus system donated 6,258 pounds of food this
year during the annual “Give and Ride” food drive that took place during the
week of April 24.
“Every year, Ride On sponsors the Give and Ride
food drive for a week during April,” said Montgomery County Executive Isiah
Leggett. “We appreciate the generosity of our passengers and employees who
donate to help local elementary-school students access food over the weekend.”
For nearly 30 years, Ride On has
sponsored the program that provides bus passengers free rides when they donate canned
or nonperishable food. The food benefits Manna Food Center, a
Gaithersburg-based non-profit organization, that distributes about 70 pounds of
fresh and nonperishable food to each of more 3,600 local families every month.
They also distribute weekly “Smart Sacks” of nutritious food to 2,450 local
elementary school students. Manna is finding it harder to meet the needs of
residents in the area and will gladly accept donations year-round.
For bus stop locations or bus schedules, check RideOnRealTime.com, or call 311 Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., 240-777-0311 from a cell phone or outside the County or TDD/TTY 301-251-4850. Route and timetable information also is available on the RideOnBus.com website.
