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Metropolitan's Donation Station

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By KENNETH KNIGHT

kknight@tampatrib.com

Published: December 2, 2008

TAMPA - For co-workers Kelly Popowski and Israel Martinez, who volunteered to deliver Thanksgiving food donations, Metropolitan Ministries' New Tampa Holiday Donation Center was a godsend.

The large red-and-white tent on the grounds of St. James United Methodist Church on Bruce B. Downs Boulevard in Tampa Palms isn't far from their offices at the Depository Trust & Clearing Corp. in Highwoods Preserve.

"It was very convenient," said Popowski, 24. "We are five minutes down the street. It was a quick drive."

The neighborhood drop-off site saved them at least an hour of drive time to Metropolitan Ministries' main holiday center on Florida Avenue near downtown.

The St. James site is the longest-running satellite tent operated by the nonprofit, which has provided food and shelter for the homeless in the Tampa Bay area for 36 years.

In its sixth year, the New Tampa donation center is staffed by about 130 volunteers during the holiday season. Most attend St. James.

"We had two great high school kids from Clearwater who came over to help us a few days ago," volunteer Ken Adum said.

The tent opened Nov. 9 for a 17-day run to collect food and turkeys for Thanksgiving. It closed today and will reopen Dec. 7 for another 17-day drive, this one mostly for toys, clothing and food. Monetary donations are welcome.

It appears the souring economy has slowed the number of drop-offs this year compared to 2007, said Jo Ann Lee, the 14-year church member coordinating the holiday drive.

Food donations by Nov. 25, officially the final collection day for Thanksgiving, slightly trailed donations for the same period last year.

Volunteers recorded 13,821 pounds of food last Thanksgiving, Lee said. Less than 10,500 pounds of food had been donated by late Nov. 25.

Morris Hintzman, president of Metropolitan Ministries, has sent out a plea for donations to help the 25,000 families registered with the nonprofit. He said the need is nearly 24 percent greater than last year.

"Some who were once donors have fallen on hard times and are now seeking our services with nowhere else to turn," Hintzman said. "Donations are down 20 percent overall."

Volunteers are stepping up to fill the need.

Lee's husband, Bob, was about to make a grocery store run to buy potatoes for the Boxes of Hope when Popowski and Martinez arrived with the huge donation from Depository Trust & Clearing.

The Boxes of Hope include rice, beans, potatoes, canned vegetables, yams, fruits and desserts. For volunteers at the New Tampa center, the goal is to help Metropolitan Ministries feed 700 Bay area families this holiday season.

Jo Ann Lee hopes the tent hits its target of 27,000 pounds of food by 6 p.m. Dec. 23, but for Christmas much of the attention is on children's wish lists.

Metropolitan Ministries is seeking new unwrapped toys and gifts for children of all ages, especially teens and infants.

The New Tampa volunteers want to collect 5,000 toys.

"At Christmastime I want children to have something under the Christmas tree," said Clarissa Henderson, one of the original supervisors.

St. James' association with Metropolitan Ministries is tied to Hintzman, a former pastor at the church.

Jo Ann Lee said Hintzman approached church leaders six years ago about the need for a donation center in New Tampa The church agreed to accept the project, and an anonymous donor gave $10,000 to get it started.

The seed money is about to run out, Lee said. Over the years, the church bought a freezer to store donated meats. It also spends about $2,000 annually to rent the tent.

"We have had some small donations to help keep us going," Lee said. "But after this year, I don't now what we will do."

But volunteers aren't throwing in the towel.

"Some way, we will be back next year," Lee said. "We will be here."

Reporter Kenneth Knight can be reached at (813) 865-4842.

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