Buckingham Boosters 4-H Club members pictured preparing bags of food for North Tama Community School District. PHOTO COURTESY OF JENNY HULME

TAMA COUNTY – Since 2011, the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation has hosted Operation Christmas Meal, a hunger relief effort supporting Iowa families in need of a helping hand, especially during the holidays. Throughout the first two weeks of December, the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation hosts Operation Christmas Meal events where they distribute free 5-pound pork loins.

The Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation once again offered community-based “Ignite the Spirit” opportunities aimed at increasing awareness of hunger locally and igniting the spirit of service by giving local student groups the tools – pork! – to help even more families during the holiday season.

The Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation offered FFA, 4-H and school-based organizations in communities four cases of pork loins and $500 to prepare a meal for families in need or organize food baskets to distribute. This year four Tama County 4-H clubs applied and were each awarded four cases of pork loins and $500!

Each pork loin is five pounds and serves approximately 16-18 people a healthy portion of pork. Four cases of pork loins will feed over 800 people. The 4-H clubs used the cash to purchase ingredients for families to make the side dishes to go along with 2 pork loins.

On Thursday, Dec. 19, the clubs gifted the food bags to schools and a library in the county. Toledo Techs gifted 20 bags of food to South Tama, Buckingham Boosters gifted 20 bags of food to North Tama, Clutier Cowboys and Cowgirls gifted 20 bags of food to Dysart Elementary and the Garwin Roughriders partnered with the Garwin library to distribute 20 bags of food.

Tama County 4-H thanks the Deb and Jeff Hansen Foundation and Iowa Select Farms for this terrific opportunity to give to our community.

To learn more about the Tama County 4-H program visit https://www.extension.iastate.edu/tama/4h or call 641-484-2703.