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Harley, from Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, pushes a card loaded with food toward waiting recipients. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Volunteers work to fill carts with food at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

A member of from Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, works to break down emptied boxes at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Members of Ohio Outlaws Medley, a southern Ohio-based softball team, load bread and buns into carts at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Volunteers unload boxes at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Volunteers work to fill carts with food at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Volunteers work to fill carts with food at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Members of Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, works to load carts with canned goods at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

A fully-stocked toy room awaited recipients at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Members of Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, works to load carts with canned goods at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

A member of from Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, works to break down emptied boxes at the Chesapeake CMO giveaway at the Chesapeake Community Center on Friday. (The Ironton Tribune | Heath Harrison)

Volunteers at CMO giveaway distribute food to 520 families in need

CHESAPEAKE — One of the largest charitable efforts of the holiday season was in full swing on Friday, Dec. 20, at the Chesapeake Community Center.

The annual food giveaway by Chesapeake Community Mission Outreach took place, and cars awaiting pickup stretched nearly a mile back on State Route 7 to the west.

Inside, the operation was bustling, with 80 volunteers on hand, with things set up in the gymnasium of the building (the former Chesapeake High School), with an assembly line approach.

Groups unboxed items, organized them, loaded them into shopping carts, wheeled the carts out to recipients in the drive thru behind the building, then broke down the cardboard boxes as items were emptied.

Dannie Newman, financial secretary for the CMO, directed the operation, which he said started that morning at about 6 a.m.

Things were as busy as they could be by 10 a.m., and Newman said they had distributed food to 520 households.

Items given away were enough to create a full Christmas dinner, from bread to canned goods to fruit to stuffing mix to perishables.

In addition to CMO’s regular volunteers, Newman said many groups from the region took part in the effort, including students from Chesapeake High School and members of the Ohio Outlaws girls softball team, as well as individuals from Bethesda Recovery, New Life Church and Southern Hope.

One returning group was Girl Scout Troop 5198, of Chesapeake, who had 10 members working in the morning, but had more coming in shifts. Their volunteers ranged in age from kindergarten to eighth grade.

In addition to the food giveaway, there was a toy room set up down the hall, in which recipients could choose from new items donated by local churches and the community. They were also raffling off larger items, such as bicycles and large teddy bears.

The CMO, a joint effort of local churches and based at the community center, has been conducting the event for decades. They also provide food throughout to the year for families who register with them.

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