By Aaron Reynolds
The Surveyor

Earlier this week you may have witnessed boys and girls of all ages scrambling down your street in Berthoud going door-to-door and dropping off fliers for a special event this Saturday, March 26.

Over 80 Boy and Girl Scouts in local troops will participate in this year’s Scouting for Food in Berthoud. The food drive works closely with the House of Neighborly Service where all donations stay in Berthoud and benefit local families. The goal is to exceed last year’s record breaking collection of over 5,500 pounds of food for over 50 households in the Berthoud community.

“The town has grown, the need has grown. We have more households to contribute to this year,” Jen Rotar, Berthoud Scouting for Food Coordinator said.

The scouts participating in this year’s event range in age from 5 year-old Daisy Girl Scouts to 17 year-old Boy and Girl Scouts. Suggested items to donate include any canned or non-perishable food or personal care items such as shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant, razors and toilet paper.

“The most important item to have donated is canned proteins – tuna, beans, any canned meat,” Rotar added. “Those are the least often donated and really necessary to make the meals.”

While many are in the “spirit of giving” during the holiday season Rotar noted that come spring it is easy to forget that families desperate for crucial nutrients and supplies are in-need of those supplies year round.

“There are other food drives that happen around the holidays but by spring time typically their cupboards are getting pretty low and [The House of Neighborly Service] is more dependent on buying food for the families in-need,” Rotar remarked. “We find that in Berthoud the holiday donations are covered pretty well but as we come into spring this is when our House of Neighborly Service really needs the donations.”

For those interested in participating, Berthoud area Boy and Girl Scouts ask that you fill a bag or box with donations and leave it in a visible location in front of your house by 8:30 a.m. on Saturday, March 26.

While there are several items the food bank is more than willing to collect please keep in mind that home-canned items, damaged items, open boxes or containers and clothing or other household items will not be accepted.

“Make sure to check expired items – if it is very recently expired – sometimes the food bank will use it. But if it’s really old please don’t donate it we just have to throw it away.”

For more information, including a complete list of suggested items to donate visit: Facebook.com/berthoudscoutingforfood/ or BerthoudTroop6.org.