(Murfreesboro) Rutherford County government and Board of Education employees packed over 55,000 Meals of Hope on Saturday (3/18/2023). More than 150 volunteers gathered in groups to pack fortified pasta with tomato sauce that will be distributed to various non-profit organizations, food banks, charities, and ministries across Rutherford County.

Emily Cox, who helps facilitate the meal-packing events, said, “When we learned that one in six children in Tennessee face hunger every day, we knew we wanted to help somehow. We are so excited to partner with Rutherford County employees to pack meals to help feed Rutherford County.”

The Meals of Hope were distributed to local agencies as an economical resource that will provide nutritional solutions to aid in the fight against hunger. Each packet contains enough food to provide six meals.

Sonya Stephenson, Rutherford County Chief of Human Resources, noted that  the county had representatives from Animal Services, Ambulance Service, Blackman Elementary, Blackman Middle, Blackman High, Buchanan Elementary, Building Codes, Cedar Grove Elementary, Central Magnet, Christiana Middle, Circuit Court Clerk’s Office, County Clerk’s Office, Circuit Judge Law Clerk, Correctional Work Center, Engineering, Finance, Human Resources, Insurance & Risk Management, Mayor’s Office, McFadden, Oakland High, Office of Information Technology, Riverdale High, Rock Springs Middle, Rockvale Elementary, Rockvale High, Rocky Fork Middle, Roy Waldron, Rutherford County Board of Education Central Office, Rutherford County Bus Drivers, Sheriff’s Office, Trustee’s Office, and Youth Services who volunteered their time to give back to the community they serve.

In addition, constitutional officers were present packing meals for their community: County Commissioner Jonathan Beverly, County Commissioner Hope Oliver, County Clerk Lisa Crowell, County Mayor Joe Carr, County School Board Chair Tammy Sharp, County School Board member Frances Rosales, and County Trustee Teb Batey. Mayor Joe Carr reflected, “This is an example of the greatest resource in Rutherford County, the people. We are fortunate to live in a community where neighbors help neighbors.”

Meals of Hope President and CEO Stephen Popper, said, “We are thankful and appreciative of the support provided by Rutherford County employees to help us combat the hunger epidemic.”

Meals of Hope is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that is committed to bringing people together to fight the hunger epidemic. It was founded in 2007, and has packed over 80-million meals that have been donated to communities in need across the nation and around the world.