Bethlehem Apostolic Temple Easter Food Giveaway Set for April 1

WHEELING - Families in need throughout the Ohio Valley will have the opportunity for a happier Easter thanks to the Bethlehem Apostolic Temple.

The church's annual Easter Giveaway is set for 11 a.m. Saturday, April 1, at the North Wheeling Community Dream Center, 407 Main St., Wheeling.

On Thursday - two days before the giveaway - there will be a "Stuff The Bus" event from 4-6 p.m. outside the Riesbecks in Elm Grove. The public is invited to donate items to be distributed during the giveaway event.

The church continues to accept donations of food items and personal grooming items, as well as monetary donations.

Canned fruits, vegetables and other canned items are needed, as well as stuffing mixes, jello and pastas. Glass containers are discouraged, and cans smaller than 15-ounce size are best for distribution.

Past Easter giveaways taking place during the COVID era were drive-throughs, with cars lining up to drive behind the building and receiving a bag of food items assembled by volunteers inside the building's basement.

This year, patrons will be able to come inside and select which items they want, explained Suffragan Bishop Darrell Cummings, the lead pastor at Bethlehem Apostolic Temple.

"We will still be in the rear in the lower level, but this will not be a drive-through, though," he said. "We did the drive-through for several years during COVID, but this will allow the people to come back in

"They will be able to pick more of what they like rather than us just putting it in a bag and dropping it in their truck. We'll be able to help more people, and they won't have to take food items they don’t need or want. I hope we're making tailor-made blessings for families."

Cummings said the church will have much to offer at the giveaway, but that "we're not back up to the level we were before the pandemic."

As of Friday, he was still working to get medical professionals to provide health screenings at the events.

"We're trying to return to some of the pre-pandemic benefits we had before," he said. "We're moving in the right direction, but it's a slow return."

In addition to food items, Easter clothes for children such as suits and dresses will be available, he added. There will also be some there for adults.

"For now, we're getting out the basics of what the families need," Cummings continued. "We all know the cost of food is up 11% over last year. What money could buy last Easter is definitely different this year.

"I found that out in the ordering of our food. It is costing more than it did a year ago."

He said the church is "grateful for what we have, and we will try to help as many as we can." Typically, about 500 people show up for the event.

Cummings is also grateful for other agencies who also are planning to do an Easter outreach to the community. But many of the services provided by these agencies are available only to Ohio County residents, he continued.

"Ours is open to other communities. We don't have a residential requirement," he said. "We will help people from other counties and other states. This is one of the things that makes us unique and special."

Items will be available on a "first-come, first-served basis," according to Cummings.

"People can come in and pick what they need, and what they like," he said. "Hopefully they get home and have a great Easter, and celebrate a new start and a new beginning."