Sharing is Caring: Video Interview with Coast Country Radio about the Thanksgiving Food Drive

The weekend before Thanksgiving was very busy with a community-wide food drive in the Salisbury area.

Bernie Greene and her family have been organizing this drive for years, which has been sponsored by Spicer Bros. Construction. The food drive takes a lot of work and we are incredibly grateful for all the time and energy spent on behalf of the hungry in our area. Many people, in fact, get involved, as well as businesses, churches, and other institutions.

This year we collected more than 15,000 pounds of non-perishable food! This will restock the shelves of our Food Pantry and help us be ready for the winter.

The kind folks at the Coast Country radio station also pitched in and gave some much needed and much appreciated help.

Below is a video (with transcript) of April Brilliant and Gary John being interviewed about the food drive and their involvement with the Joseph House.

We are thankful for the Greene family, Spicer Bros., Coast Country, Delmarva Life, and everyone who contributed to make this year’s food drive such a success!

It warms the heart to see so many people caring. Coming together to alleviate hunger is holy work, and we ask God to give us the grace we each need to do our part. Blessings to all!

Coast Country Cares Is Out Collecting Food Donations For The Joseph House

Posted by Delmarva Life, November 22, 2024.

Description: We find out how Coast Country Cares is heading out to help collect food donations for The Joseph House.

Jimmy Hoppa: Residents of the Delmarva Peninsula know the name, know the cause: the Joseph House has been reaching out to those in need since 1965. They offer hope, they uphold dignity, they stabilize the lives of families. Without question, their services range from providing shelter to child care and assistance of all kinds. One of their most critical missions is that of food drives, and with us this afternoon some good friends on the couch, we’ve got Gary John who is the host of The Ride Home on Coast Country 103.9 and 106.3. April Brilliant has the midday show on Coast Country as well. Good to see you guys.

April Brilliant: Good to see you.

Jimmy Hoppa: Thanks for coming in.

Gary John: Thanks for having us.

Jimmy Hoppa: Let me ask you, I tell what, just for those who haven’t heard about Coast Country cares yet, although that would be hard to believe, define for me what Coast Country Cares is.

April Brilliant: Well, we’ve teamed up with Spicer Bros., in fact it was Spicer Bros. idea actually that brought it to us to do charity events throughout the year and that’s what we’ve been doing. So every month we try to do something a little bit different, and November is always our big food drive with Joseph House.

Jimmy Hoppa: Okay, so what are you doing with the food drive?

Gary John: Well, basically if you’re not familiar with the food drive every year right around Thanksgiving there is an effort in the Salisbury community. They deliver bags to certain neighborhoods, they’ll hang them on your door, and then they ask you to fill the bags. And then the collection day is this Saturday [note: the food drive was on November 23], so if you’ve gotten one of those bags all you have to do is put some items in there you put it right outside of your door. There are a number of volunteers in the community that are going to ride through those neighborhoods Saturday morning and pick them up, and then we’re going to be stationed at the parking lot of the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center that’s where the big collection happens.

Jimmy Hoppa: Okay, sorry I didn’t mean to interrupt, what kind of items are you looking for?

Gary John: Any nonperishable food items. I know what often happens at this time of year people think Thanksgiving dinner, which is great, boxes of stuffing, yams, vegetables, etc., but as you’ve heard the Joseph House feeds folks all throughout the year.

Jimmy Hoppa: Yeah, we start talking and you guys light up. Have you got a favorite part of this?

April Brilliant: We, I love it. I mean we have a great time out there and it’s just wonderful to see the folks, because often we’ll have people come out to do donations that have benefited from the Joseph House, and I think those are the most special donations that we receive, and they’ll actually share their stories.

Gary John: Well, I think what’s the scariest part is when you hear those stories is you realize that those people aren’t much different than you and I, and how close we may be to being in need, and the fact that they take the little extra that they do have because at their darkest hour there was somebody there to lend a hand. They feel it’s important to continue to put that hand forward. I just think it’s amazing.

Jimmy Hoppa: Is that why Joseph House is such a good cause for Coast Country Cares?

April Brilliant: Oh absolutely.

Gary John: Yeah, I mean like you said they’ve been serving the community since 1965. For people that feel like they have nowhere else to turn, to know that there is kind of that safety net there to lift you up, make sure your kids have a warm meal to eat, that you can get some socks or a shower, etc. Just having that opportunity for you know Lower Delaware and all throughout the Eastern Shore, to have that organization, to know that they’re there. We feel like it’s an important one to stand behind.

April Brilliant: And they do have a Soup Kitchen, too, and I had the chance to volunteer in there a couple of different times, and the people that come in are just so nice and so happy, and they just enjoy not only the food but the fellowship that they get to experience when they come into to the . . .

Jimmy Hoppa: And when is this?

Gary John: Well, so the collection that we’re doing is this Saturday [note: the food drive was on November 23]. We’ll be there from 10:00 a.m. until noon at the parking lot of the Wicomico Youth and Civic Center. The best part is you don’t have to get out of your car if you don’t want to, just drive on up, you’ll see our Coast Country tent, we’ll be happy to take those off your hands.

Jimmy Hoppa: There you go, so have you got any other, you said monthly, so is there anything else you can tease us about that’s upcoming?

Gary John: Well, we certainly can because we’re not that far out from our December Coast Country Cares event which will be set up right near the Food Court at the Centre at Salisbury, Saturday, December 7th. It’s our one last push to help the Toys for Tots campaign here locally.

Jimmy Hoppa: And what’s happening? Tell me again the wheres and whens of this Saturday.

April Brilliant: This one is Saturday 11 to 1 at the Wicomico Civic Center in Salisbury.

Jimmy Hoppa: And that’s gathering for the Joseph House.

April Brilliant: Yep, and our friend Paula will be out there, you can come by and stop by and see her, she’ll love to visit with you.

Jimmy Hoppa: Awesome.

Gary John: And if you miss any of it you can always go to our website coastcountry.com. Just click on the Events tab and click on Station Events, you’ll find all the details you need.

Jimmy Hoppa: Gary John, April Brilliant, thank you so much for everything you guys do in the community, you’re just absolutely awesome.

April Brilliant: Thank you.

Gary John: And thank you of course to our friends at Spicer Bros., without them we wouldn’t be able to do it.

Jimmy Hoppa: There you go.