A new name, a new brand, but the same heart as organizers hope that the generous offerings that Clark County residents have given to Walk & Knock will continue while using a Drive & Drop model, with the food drive scheduled for Dec. 6

The name is new, but the heart remains the same.

One of the largest, local, one-day food drives has a new brand.

After 40 years of helping feed Clark County, Walk & Knock is changing its format to a Drive & Drop model.

Instead of volunteers picking up donations from porches, we’re asking everyone to be volunteers and bring donations of non-perishable food and toiletries to one of 16 drop sites throughout Clark County on Saturday, Dec. 6, from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m.

Walk & Knock, or Drive & Drop, brown bags have gone out in the mail to Clark County residents. Organizers hope folks who are able will fill those bags and deliver them to the drop-off sites.

“We just haven’t been able to recruit enough volunteers to cover our county’s fast-growing population,” said Justin Wood, president of Drive & Drop.

Volunteer numbers have dropped from 4,000 to less than 2,000 in the past 10 years, while the county has grown to more than half a million people, Wood noted.

“However, we want to keep providing this much-needed service, and we’re hoping you will make Drive & Drop as successful as Walk & Knock has been,” he said.

For a list of barrel locations, go to: https://walkandknock.org/drop-locations#barrel-sites

Donations also can be made at area McDonald’s Riverview Bank branches, Les Schwab Tire Centers, or Cost Less Auto Parts stores between Dec. 1 through 15.

Financial donations can be made online at https://walkandknock.org/how-to-donate

The need is real. According to the Clark County Food Bank, one in four neighbors is hunger insecure.

“Our best years have always been the hardest ones – recessions, a pandemic, and this year, the loss of some government support,” Wood said. “But Clark County has always risen to the occasion, proving that when the need is greatest, our compassion is even greater.”

“This effort takes year-round planning, the partnership of sponsors, the dedication of volunteers and the steadfast mission of the Clark County Food Bank,” Wood said.

All donations – food and financial – go directly to the Clark County Food Bank.

Administrative costs are covered by our generous community sponsors. Title sponsors this year are: area McDonalds, Cowlitz Indian Tribe/ilani, Riverview Bank, Cost Less Auto Parts, Pacific Lifestyle Homes, Legacy Health and Big Al’s.

Organized in 1985 by local service clubs, the annual food drive has collected more than 9.7 million pounds of food valued at $17.6 million, and has provided over 11.6 million meals for the needy in Clark County.

For more information, visit: https://walkandknock.org/