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In The News

Urban League’s Christmas Feeding Campaign: Honoring Beatrice McKnight

Although Beatrice Taylor McKnight won’t be around to lead the Columbia Urban League’s food campaign that feeds 350 elderly families for Christmas—staff and volunteers have vowed to carry out her legacy in a special way.

In honor and memory of Mrs. McKnight, this year’s campaign will be named the Columbia Urban League Beatrice McKnight Annual Christmas Giving Program for the Elderly, said James T. McLawhorn, Jr., President and CEO of the organization. With the recent passing of one of South Carolina’s civil rights icon and a community servant leader, it is only befitting to recognize the contributions Mrs. McKnight made to helping improve the lives of thousands of people, he said. She dedicated most of her life to serving others and for nearly 30 years, she worked diligently to make sure poor people in communities throughout this City and beyond had food to eat during the Christmas Holiday.

“Mrs. McKnight was a courageous woman. She was anointed with a special gift for helping the disadvantaged and disenfranchised. She went into communities where the most downtrodden lived and worked hard to lift them up and give them a sense of dignity and hope,” McLawhorn said. “Even during her failing health, Mrs. McKnight worked closely with staff to make sure this year’s food program would go over successfully, and we want to honor that kind of commitment.”

In an unstable economy, more than ever, many elderly people are seeking out food pantries and soup kitchens to help supplement their groceries. The Columbia Urban League will sponsor its 43rd Annual Christmas Giving Campaign for the Elderly and the annual radio-thon will kick off from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on December 16th in the Columbia Urban League’s office, located at 1400 Barnwell Street, Columbia, SC, 29201. This year’s sponsors are Bi-Lo, Food Lion, Kroger, Publix, and Wal-Mart. Media sponsors are WWDM-101.3 and WFMV-95.3. Partnerships with corporations, other community organizations and volunteers are essential to the success of a project of this magnitude, McLawhorn said. It provides the Urban League with many tentacles to reach those in need, he added.

On the heels of the Radio-thon, the Columbia Urban League will distribute the food boxes to families on Monday, December 20th at Alcorn Middle School, located at 5125 Fairfield Road in Columbia, S.C. In an assembly-line setup, volunteers such as firefighters, UPS workers, youth volunteers and athletes will join forces to accomplish a worthy mission. From 7-10 a.m., the assembly line will operate; food will be packaged in 350 boxes; then from 11a.m. to 1 p.m., families will pick up food boxes at the Alcorn site. Additionally, McLawhorn, Urban League staff, firefighters and other volunteers will deliver food boxes to families who are unable to pick up, because of various reasons such as illness and lack of transportation. (This is a photo and media footage opportunity.)

The Columbia Urban League is accepting donations for its Christmas Giving Project, and will continue until the end of December. Sponsorship is $40 per family; however, we accept larger or smaller donations. You can contribute on line at www.columbiaurbanleague.org or contact Jerry Screen at 803-799-8150, ext. 132.