VIDALIA — The 12th annual jambalaya fundraiser to benefit Feed the Hungry raised $2,267, and helped feed area residents in more ways than one.

Program Director Linda Bonnette said she appreciates Sheriff Randy Maxwell and all of the help he has given to Feed the Hungry during the last 12 years.

“The jambalaya fundraiser and Mayor (Hyram) Copeland’s fundraiser are the two major ways we raise money for the program,” she said. “Knowing we have the support of the city behind us really helps.”

The sheriff’s office provides the food for the fundraiser, and Feed the Hungry provides to-go plates, deli paper, utensils and packets of hot sauce, Bonnette said.

“Sheriff Maxwell was the one who first marketed this to us,” she said. “He has always said he would cook for as many people as we need to help benefit the program.”

Maxwell said it is nice to have a program that does so much good for the community.

“Feed the Hungry helps hundreds of people in this parish month after month and year after year,” he said. “I’m glad that the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office is able to help them through the annual fundraiser.”

Maxwell said he and the Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office are always glad to give back to the community.

“There are a lot of people who heavily depend on the food items that Feed the Hungry provides just to make it through the month,” he said. “This is our small way to help out a truly worthwhile organization that helps so many.”

Bonnette said the Feed the Hungry program has been a constant help to citizens in need for the past 14 years.

“The whole program started when I brought a big barrel and put it in our church foyer,” she said. “Now we have two buildings, a walk in freezer and more access to supplies.”

Bonnette said she did not know the program would grow to the size it is today.

“I found something God put on my heart and allowed me to do,” she said.

Feed the Hungry provides meals to residents of several parishes and counties, Bonnette said.

“We are a part of the Miss-Lou area, and after the Natchez food bank was closed we got permission to give some food to Mississippi residents,” she said. “We just try to do the best for the people that come to us for help.”

Bonnette said helping those in need is something she will always cherish.

“We have seen highs and lows here,” she said. “You never know what people need, and we just try and do the best we can when supplying people with food.”

Bonnette said through the people she helps, she knows what she is doing is making a difference.

“We had one elderly man who said with food stamps and his Social Security check he can eat for three weeks,” she said. “He told me that our program helps him eat for the last week of the month. Things like this make me realize that what we are doing is important.”