Georgetown, Del., Dec. 13, 2021: Neither wind nor rain nor any other would-be Christmas Scrooge can keep Sussex County carolers from filling the air with words of good cheer or stuffing local pantries with food there and here this holiday season.
More than 250 carolers gathered in downtown Georgetown for the 38th annual Caroling on The Circle event Monday night, Dec. 13, delayed a few days by some humbug weather the week before, to sing in the Christmas season and help those less fortunate. It was the event’s triumphant return to the stage after taking a pause in 2020 due to the ongoing pandemic.
Organizers at the end of Monday night’s event announced that the 2021 return of Caroling on The Circle has so far collected nearly 18,750 canned goods and other non-perishable items for local pantries, which will feed needy families in the community during the cold winter months ahead. The campaign continues through the end of December.
Each year, Caroling on The Circle kicks off the holiday season for Sussex County, while serving as a community food drive to benefit local food banks. Started in 1984 as part of the Delaware First initiative, Caroling on The Circle continues to help those in need a generation later. To date, the community has donated nearly 775,000 food items through the Caroling on The Circle program throughout the course of its 38-year history.
“To say the past couple of years have been a challenge would be an understatement, but Sussex Countians have proven yet again, even in the face of adversity, that nothing will hold them back from lending a hand to those in need,” County Administrator Todd F. Lawson said. “It’s through their generosity that Caroling on The Circle can be the success that it is, and the hope it represents for so many of our fellow neighbors each and every year.”
As part of the Caroling event, Sussex County once again called on the public to ‘Pack the Pod’ by setting up a 14-foot-by-7-foot storage trailer on The Circle. The unit served as a focal point for Caroling and to heighten awareness about the food drive.
Monday night’s Caroling event, along with collections from Sussex County Council, County employees, numerous schools, groups and businesses leading up to the event, helped this year’s preliminary total to reach approximately 18,750 items. With several weeks still left in the drive, the County hopes to take the final total even higher by the New Year.
In 2020, an abbreviated campaign collected about 15,000 items, despite the curtains coming down on last year’s Caroling event.
For this year’s efforts, the public can continue to drop off canned goods and non-perishable food items between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the County Administrative Offices building on The Circle in Georgetown. The Caroling on The Circle/Pack the Pod food drive will continue until Dec. 30.
Mr. Lawson thanked the public and those in attendance at Monday night’s event, and acknowledged several participating groups. Those included County Council, County employees, ALOFT AeroArchitects, Steve Class/Colonial East, First State Manufactured Housing Association, Fuqua, Willard, Stevens & Schab law firm, Little Einsteins daycare, Nicola Pizza, as well as Georgetown Elementary, Long Neck Elementary, North Georgetown Elementary, and Rehoboth Elementary schools, Millsboro Middle School, and Delmarva Christian High, Sussex Academy, and Seaford High schools.
Items collected will be donated to approximately 20 area pantries, shelters and church organizations for distribution within Sussex County.
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