As the 2019 Christmas season has concluded, creator of the "Christmas in Wadena" Light Show GP Anderson donated food and monetary gifts from the community to Project Share of Wadena.
A check for $1,486.40 and 491 pounds of food were given to Wadena Food Shelf volunteers Alice Houle and Mary Ann Hagen. Over the past 12 years, "Christmas in Wadena" has collected more than 4,323 pounds of food and $15,916.06 for the food shelf.
Anderson said he does it because "to truly relieve hunger in our community, it's important that we first transform the thinking behind hunger relief. Providing a bag of groceries to a person in need today is obviously important. But how do we make it so that person isn't in need tomorrow?"
"Implementing sustainable systems that feed our neighbors in immediate need while helping them get back on their feet and in position to help others is the key to ending the cycle of hunger," Anderson said. "It's becoming increasingly clear that providing our hungry neighbors information about available resources is just as important as the food source itself. What good is a food source if no one knows about it?"
"Christmas in Wadena" is an animated light show to music that is created, produced, edited, mixed, built and maintained by Anderson. Thousands of people have visited the free display over past holiday seasons. Learn more at www.christmasinwadena.com .
