WRIGHTSTOWN, Wis. (WFRV) – Veterans and community members came together Saturday morning to fight hunger, this time, not on the battlefield, but at the donation table.
As part of the national VFW Day of Service, members of Veterans of Foreign Wars Posts and Auxiliaries from Wisconsin’s 8th District launched a district-wide “Veterans Against Hunger” initiative.
The final celebration and food drop-off event was held at Cotter Funeral Home in Wrightstown, marking the end of a multi-week campaign supporting rural food pantries and a local animal rescue.
Michelle Leick-Leurquin, VFW Post 2113 surgeon and service officer, said the idea came from a conversation with fellow veteran Randy Hansen.
“We know that the southern Brown County food pantries don’t get a lot of support the bigger area food pantries get, like Green Bay and De Pere, they get the support of Paul’s Pantry,” she said. “We know that they are in need, especially as our area is growing.”
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Donations were collected at multiple locations, including Community First Credit Union, Dick’s Family Foods, and local fire and police departments, which helped organize “Fill the Squad Car” drives in both De Pere and Wrightstown. Items collected will be distributed to five small food pantries in the area and the newly created Wild and Free Animal Rescue Group.
Leick-Leurquin, a 22-year veteran, said the event gave her a chance to keep serving even after retirement.
“I still crave the service,” she said. “The support is huge. It really gives you that warm feeling in your heart knowing that you’re able to give back to everybody and continue to serve.”
Boy Scouts from De Pere Troop 1039 also helped collect and sort food at the final event.
“I love helping the community, it’s something I’ve always loved doing,” said Lucas Beck, an Eagle Scout. “For us it gives us service hours but it helps us know that we got to help the community, that we got to impact it just a little bit more.”
Organizers say they hope the campaign inspires more service-based events in the future, uniting veterans and civilians around a common cause.
