MOUNT VERNON — Local media outlets will join together this weekend for the 30th annual Food for the Hungry drive, to benefit The Salvation Army and Interchurch Social Services.
A live broadcast of all the day’s events begins Saturday at 9 a.m. and continues until 5 p.m. on 13WMVO in Mount Vernon and Time Warner Cable throughout Knox County (channel 9). The broadcast will originate from Mount Vernon City Hall. This year’s broadcast will also be streamed live at www.FoodForTheHungryCares.org
Local radio personalities Dave Bevington of WMVO/Best Variety Eagle 93.7 and Marcy Rinehart of WNZR will co-host the event. WMVO’s Marty Trese, Joe Rinehart of WNZR and Adam Taylor of KnoxPages.com will also assist in hosting portions of the broadcast. I-CONN Video Production, the Mount Vernon Nazarene University Department of Communication, Wayne Bower and Time Warner Cable are donating production and technical support.
This year’s broadcast will feature several community members and organizations presenting their contributions to the drive. The 2011 elementary and middle school drive winners will be recognized, along with the individual school honorees of this year’s High School Drive.
The ninth annual Food for the Hungry Shopping Cart Derby will start at 10:45 a.m. Teams from Time Warner Cable, Mount Vernon News, WNZR and WMVO/Best Variety Eagle 93.7 FM will start from opposite ends of the city and push a shopping cart toward the Public Square. The progress of the derby will be reported on all broadcast media.
At noon, a series of videos produced by MVNU and Kenyon students will show how couponing can benefit our local food pantries, highlight food sustainability efforts, recap November’s Beatles Chautauqua benefit concert, and offer a memorial honoring friends of the drive who have passed away. At 3:15 p.m., Mount Vernon Nazarene University will present the annual Stephen W. Zelkowitz Memorial Award posthumously to the family of Sam McQueen.
There will also be plenty of local entertainment throughout the broadcast, hosted by I-CONN’s Matt Starr and featuring performances from local musicians Lauren Cagle, Lisa May, Timothy Noble, Cassidy Noonen, an ensemble from Mount Vernon High School, and the duo Eagle Grove — Jenny and Jason Parker.
Radio stations providing updates throughout the day from City Hall include WNZR 90.9 FM and Best Variety Eagle 93.7 FM.
For more information about this year’s drive or to donate online, log on to www.FoodForTheHungryCares.org.


