Radford-Fairlawn Daily Bread

1 in 5 of our neighbors struggles with food insecurity.  For over 30 years, Radford Fairlawn Daily Bread has administered two free meal programs serving residents of the City of Radford and the Fairlawn community of Pulaski, County- Meals on Wheels and Dining Room services.   We work in partnership with Feeding Southwest Virginia, NRV Glean Team, local food pantries, churches and other humanitarian organizations to support a systemic approach to addressing the complex needs faced by members of our community.

In 2021 we served over 35,000 free meals; far exceeding our previous annual average of 22,000 meals served. In 2022 the need continued to increase with a record number of over 37,000 meals served across both of our programs.  This increased need during Covid coincided with suspension of donations of diverted foods from local grocery stores and universities that had previously been used in our kitchen. While these donations have resumed during post-Covid recovery they remain drastically decreased resulting in an unprecedented increase in our cost to purchase foods necessary for meal preparation.  Our annual cost for food purchase increased from $3500 in 2019 to more than $50,000 in 2022.  This cost remains high with more than $35,000 spent so far in 2023. 

We make a significant impact in the lives of disadvantaged individuals by reducing food insecurity while also providing a sense of community support.  Many of our Dining Room and Takeout guests do not have the resources, facilities, or ability to prepare a similar home-style meal.  Our Meals on Wheels recipients report that the delivered meals enable them to stay in their own homes longer.