By Aaron Allen, The Seattle Medium
The Seattle Medium, in partnership with the Bennett Media Group (KRIZ, KYIZ and KBMS radio), the Bible Law Group, Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church and other community partners, will host its annual food drive on Saturday, Nov. 22, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. at the Seattle Medium Building, 2600 S. Jackson St.
The event marks the return of the food drive after a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As economic uncertainty continues and many families face hardship, organizers say the need for support is greater than ever.
According to Jawann Bennett, VP of the Bennett Media Group, the growing needs of our community is something that we, collectively, cannot afford to overlook.
“The food drive is important because not only is it something that we haven’t been able to produce since COVID, but it’s a necessary time and today’s financial climate. And there’s many people’s benefits that either been taken away, jobs that have been taken away. And for the most part, people are, especially up here in the Northwest and in the Seattle area, people are being displaced. They’re being moved out of places where they normally found comfort and where you could find meals and you could find family, there’s barely anything in cupboards,” says Bennett. “So, through a community effort, through a team effort, we decided to bring this back. It was very necessary, and we were hoping that through the community and their efforts that we can get some things accomplished that we used to do. We haven’t done this since 2019.”
This year, the Seattle Medium and Bennett Media Group are partnering for the first time with the Bible Law Group. James Bible, of the Bible Law Group, has been giving back to the community for years, and believes that collaboration between community partners is vital when it comes to truly making a difference in the lives of others in today’s social and economic environment.
“This is our first time partnering with the Seattle Medium. We know that Seattle Medium has historically done really solid work with their food drive and their coat drive, and we were looking for a way to help and grow and build within the community, so it seemed like a logical fit,” says Bible.
The annual foot drive is not only a community service project, it has also become a traditional event that brings friends, families and the community together with a shared purpose.
“We as a family have been doing this since the 1990s, but I mean the Bennett family has been a central role in the Seattle community, particularly the Black community and how we contribute from the coat drives to the food drives,” says Bennett. “We’re humbled by it but very prideful of it, and we stand on the shoulders of so many that have done it before us.”
“I know through efforts of the late Dr. Samuel B. McKinney and things that he instilled in us, through different organizations, such as Camp CAYA, who helped us in the past, and of course, through various other community partners over the years, it’s been something that’s been part of not only just a legacy in the community, but been our family legacy, which reminds us of the holiday season every year,” continued Bennett. “More important for us though is to help others before we focus on each other and celebrate a year of coming together. So personally, I’m humbled by the legacy that we’ve created in regard to helping people and it’s not about us, it’s not about the Bennett name, it’s about community. That’s why we say, ‘service to the community is our most important product.’”
To help ensure no family goes without food this holiday season, the Seattle Medium is asking our readers, community members, and partners to donate non-perishable food items at 2600 S. Jackson St. on Saturday, Nov. 22, from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. In addition, we are asking people to reach out to their personal and professional networks and ask them to participate as well.
“It’s important that anybody that can reach out at this time of need for so many others that are in a place where they don’t have adequate food,” says Bible. “There’s a lot of families that are suffering, parents having difficulty feeding their children and the like. And as a community, we need to stand up and help one another, and that’s part of the importance of this food drive.”
