Yard sale, canned food drive to benefit Heartland Heroes Project | Community Spirit

CARTERVILLE, IL (KFVS) - Heartland Heroes Project is holding their bi-annual benefit yard sale October 6 and 7 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The yard sale will be at C&J Signs, Storage and U-Haul, located at 702 East Plaza Drive in Carterville, between San’s Chinese Restaurant and Napa Auto Parts.

The money raised will go toward purchasing items and shipping fees for the troops stationed overseas. They are also collecting canned and shelf stable foods to be donated to the Carterville pantry.

“We are asking the people of Southern Illinois to come through for us once again,” said Mary Beth Baxter. “The pantries are getting low on food as the number of people who need help grows. None of us are immune to needing a helping hand and one day it may be you who needs help. We need to be there for our community as a whole and that includes those who need help feeding their families. No one should ever have to go hungry.”

The money raised will be used to pay for shipping care packages to the troops stationed overseas. Organizers say with Christmas coming up soon, the packages are a very important morale boost. Items can be donated to ship also.

“Beef jerky, hand warmers, sock caps, socks and gloves are always needed,” said Dan Baxter. “Christmas is always a lonely time for our troops, being away from their families. We want to make sure they receive something special for the holidays. We will also have Christmas cards for people to fill out to send to the troops. It was a big hit last year and we want to continue the tradition.”

The Christmas cards and packages will be shipped to the soldiers serving overseas in time for Christmas.

The yard sale will offer all sorts of items donated by the people of Southern Illinois.

“We have everything you can imagine in the sale,” Cody Baxter said. “If you still can’t find anything to purchase, we only ask that you fill out a card for the troops and maybe donate a few canned goods for the pantry. Every little bit helps and we are happy to get help in any form. We are also in need of donations to be sold in the yard sale. These items can be dropped off in front of Unit #1 at C&J Storage and U-Haul.”

For questions or directions, please call 618-985-6634 or 618-751-6868.

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