With Thanksgiving approaching and the December holidays not far behind, organizations across Northern Virginia are collecting food and other essentials to help families facing food insecurity.
From neighborhood collection drives in Reston and Falls Church to holiday food distributions in Arlington, Herndon, and Stafford County, residents can donate groceries, volunteer, or receive assistance.
Several collection drives are already underway, while others will continue into December. The following guide includes upcoming food drives, drop-off locations, donation deadlines and programs offering food assistance to residents.
Reston Community Center, the Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce and Cornerstones are collecting food, hygiene products, baby supplies and other essentials to support local families.
The drive runs through Nov. 25, with donations accepted at locations throughout Reston, Herndon and McLean. Organizers will assemble donated items into kits during a Thanksgiving morning volunteer event at RCC Hunters Woods.
Requested food items include rice, beans, pasta, peanut butter, canned meats, cereal, soups, shelf-stable milk and granola bars. The drive is also seeking diapers, baby wipes, shampoo, toothpaste and feminine hygiene products.
Drop-off locations include:
Additional collection sites and the complete list of requested items are available on the Reston Community Center website.
The Kensington Falls Church, 700 W. Broad St., is collecting nonperishable food throughout November to benefit Food for Others, a nonprofit that provides food assistance throughout Northern Virginia.
The campaign concludes Tuesday, Nov. 24, when donations will be loaded into a truck for delivery to the food bank. The Stuff the Truck event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Requested donations include canned fruits and vegetables, beans, soup, pasta, rice, peanut butter, shelf-stable milk and fruit juice.
Residents who donate can receive a pumpkin pie to take home Nov. 24.
More information is available on The Kensington Falls Church website.
LINK Against Hunger, a volunteer organization serving Herndon and Sterling, is accepting registrations for its annual holiday food distribution.
Distributions are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 12, and Saturday, Dec. 19, from 2 to 4 p.m.
The program aims to provide participating families with enough groceries for three to five days. Grocery gift cards, winter coats and toys may also be available, depending on donations.
To qualify, residents must live in Herndon or Sterling east of Route 28.
Registration is open through the LINK Against Hunger holiday program website.
LINK also provides regular food deliveries to eligible families in its service area.
The Arlington Food Assistance Center will provide additional holiday groceries to registered households during the weeks preceding Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Eligible families will receive a frozen whole chicken weighing approximately 5 to 7 pounds in addition to their regular weekly groceries.
Thanksgiving distributions are scheduled for Nov. 16-21, followed by Christmas distributions Dec. 14-19.
The holiday chickens are available to preregistered Arlington households. Walk-in visitors without referrals are not eligible.
Arlington residents seeking assistance can contact the county's Department of Human Services at 703-228-1300 or visit the department's customer service center at 2100 Washington Blvd.
More information about eligibility and holiday distributions is available through AFAC's holiday grocery program.
Associated Builders and Contractors Virginia is partnering with BetterALife to collect food and household necessities for families in Loudoun County.
The organization says donations will help support more than 2,000 local families during the holiday season.
The collection runs through Thursday, Nov. 19.
Requested donations include rice, pasta, cereal, canned meats, peanut butter, soup, baby formula, diapers, hygiene products and grocery gift cards.
Collection locations include:
For details, visit ABC Virginia's holiday food drive page.
The Hylton Performing Arts Center in Manassas will collect breakfast foods for children staying at a Northern Virginia Family Service shelter.
The annual drive begins Friday, Nov. 27, and continues through Wednesday, Dec. 23.
Organizers are requesting shelf-stable milk, low-sugar cereal, granola bars, oatmeal and breakfast juice boxes.
Donations can be dropped off in the center's Didlake Grand Foyer from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. Visitors attending December performances can also bring donations.
The Hylton Center is located at 10960 George Mason Circle in Manassas.
Additional information is available in George Mason University's announcement.
Apple Federal Credit Union is collecting nonperishable groceries at its branches throughout Northern Virginia through Monday, Nov. 30.
Donations will benefit six regional organizations:
Requested items include canned vegetables, fruit cups, canned chicken and tuna, rice, pasta, cereal, oatmeal, peanut butter, soup and baking supplies.
Organizers ask donors to avoid expired food, opened packages and glass containers.
Residents can find participating branches and additional information on Apple Federal Credit Union's food drive page.
Stafford County Public Schools, the Stafford Education Foundation, Amazon and the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank are launching two automated community food kiosks designed to provide around-the-clock food assistance.
The kiosks will be located at North Stafford High School, 835 Garrisonville Road, and Shirley C. Heim Middle School.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony and demonstration are scheduled for Friday, Nov. 13, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. at North Stafford High School.
The kiosks are intended to provide confidential food access 24 hours a day, seven days a week, for anyone in the Stafford community.
Each kiosk is expected to distribute up to 12,000 pounds of food monthly.
The project is funded through a $200,000 allocation from Amazon's previously announced $560,000 investment in the community, according to Stafford County Public Schools.
The school division has not yet released instructions explaining how residents can access food from the kiosks.
For additional information, visit Stafford County Public Schools.
Tzu Chi USA is offering free food distributions in Reston and Herndon during November and December.
The organization works with the Capital Area Food Bank and Cornerstones Food Hub to provide groceries to more than 700 households monthly.
Upcoming distributions include:
No proof of need is required to receive food.
Residents interested in volunteering can register through Tzu Chi's website.
For more information, visit the Reston distribution schedule or Herndon distribution information.
Residents who need groceries or want to help their neighbors can contact regional food assistance organizations directly.
Among the organizations providing ongoing food assistance are:
Residents should check with organizers before visiting a donation or distribution location. Some programs require advance registration, proof of residency or a referral, while others offer food without documentation.
Know of another holiday food drive? Northern Virginia residents, nonprofits, schools, churches and community groups are encouraged to share information about additional holiday food drives and free food distributions with their local Patch editor. Include the organization's name, collection dates, drop-off address, requested items and a link to the event.
Sign up for free local newsletters and alerts for the
Across Virginia Patch
Patch.com is the nationwide leader in hyperlocal news.
Visit Patch.com to find your town today.