21,000 pounds of food given away within hours

Posted 8/20/20

A steady stream of vehicles poured into the Glad Tidings Assembly of God Church parking lot Tuesday morning as volunteers gave away 21,000 pounds of meat and cheese.

The free distribution was …

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21,000 pounds of food given away within hours

Posted

A steady stream of vehicles poured into the Glad Tidings Assembly of God Church parking lot Tuesday morning as volunteers gave away 21,000 pounds of meat and cheese.

The free distribution was “a wonderful testament of living in a great small town in America,” said Greg Wise of Powell, one of many volunteers who helped with the giveaway.

The line of vehicles stretched from Seventh Street to Panther Boulevard/Road 8, then continued to Lane 8. Within hours, all 1,100 boxes of meat and cheese were distributed.

“It was an awesome day,” said Mike Walsh, pastor of Glad Tidings Assembly of God Church in Powell.

He called the giveaway “a total success” as volunteers worked to ensure things ran smoothly.

“I was blown away — every person was on their game,” Walsh said. “Our team was incredible. They just innately grabbed it and did it, and they just knew what to do.”

Glad Tidings Assembly of God Church partnered with Convoy of Hope, a faith-based nonprofit, for the local giveaway. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Convoy of Hope has delivered 50 million meals and counting across America.

“That number can be difficult to process,” Convoy of Hope leaders posted online Friday. “When we think about the number of people who have needed those meals, the situation in the U.S. can seem quite bleak. But we’re not doing this alone.”

The Missouri-based nonprofit is partnering with community members “who are helping us bring meals and the light of hope into the places that need it,” said the organization.

There were no requirements to receive the food, which was available on a first-come, first-served basis. Due to the demand, the giveaway was limited to one box per household. Options included

barbecue pork with cheese, sloppy joe meat and chicken taco meat with cheese.

People from around the area attended the giveaway Tuesday. About 850 vehicles went through the line, Walsh said, and other boxes were distributed through local nonprofits and organizations.

“The volunteers from Glad Tidings and others were stellar with their hard work in the heat to quickly move cars through the distribution lanes as they loaded the product into the vehicles of the recipients,” Wise said.

Pastor Walsh and his wife, Becky, “worked tirelessly to put this all together,” Wise said.

“Mike McClaflin was instrumental in this with his past association with Convoy of Hope,” he said, while Rick and Colleen Johnson’s assistance with a truck and trailer was essential.

Big Horn Co-op provided a forklift, which was operated by Orville Moore.

Crews were slurry sealing in the area on Tuesday morning, and City Streets Superintendent Andy Metzler helped ensure the road was open in front of the church.

The Powell Police Department — including Police Chief Roy Eckerdt, Matt McCaslin, Trevor Carpenter and Sean Alquist — oversaw traffic control, helping well before the giveaway and staying after it ended, Wise said.

“Pay it forward, Powell and Big Horn Basin residents,” Wise said. “We will do it again as the opportunity arises. God bless!”

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