LAKEPORT — For roughly 15 years, Lakeport’s Grocery Outlet has drummed up food and gift card donations from customers to help feed the hungry in Lake County. The food drive is part of Grocery Outlet’s ‘Independence from Hunger’ program, and sees hundreds of pounds of food delivered to Lake County food pantries like the United Christian Parish of Upper Lake, the Kelseyville Food Pantry and the Upper Lake Food Pantry. This year’s donations, said Grocery Outlet co-owner Jackie Hansen, outdid last year’s by about $1,600 at a total of $5,915. Due to the volume of donators, the store ran out of food gift bags and began substituting other food items. Hansen noted that the store’s own employees donated over $500 of food. United Christian Parish co-pastor Natalie Moon Wainwright said the annual food drives ‘go a long way’ toward feeding locals in need.
