Hastings Tastings is an annual fundraising event for Hastings Family Service (HFS) that happens each spring during MN Foodshare. This year, HFS is suggesting a reverse Hastings Tastings Takeout instead that supports the area restaurants that have made 24 years of Hastings Tastings events possible.

Hastings Family Service will highlight area restaurants/establishments on their facebook page each week throughout MN Foodshare, providing links and any specials they are offering for Hastings Tastings Takeout. “The only way we can get back to a typical Hastings Tastings event is for our area restaurants and establishments to survive and thrive,” said Kelly Carter, HFS Development & Community Relations Coordinator. “It has been a challenging year for many and this is our chance to support them.”

The concept of Hastings Tastings Takeout is deliciously simple. HFS encourages you to enjoy dining in or order a meal for takeout from a local restaurant and post a picture of your experience/ food on Facebook to help spread the word. Tag #hastingsfamilyservice and at the end of MN Foodshare, HFS will randomly draw a winner who will receive a $50 gift card from the restaurant featured in their facebook post. “Our local restaurants have always gone the extra mile for HFS and we are lucky to have them in our community,” said Carter.

Participating Restaurants: 2nd Street Depot Alexis Bailly Vineyard American Legion Applebee’s Grill and Bar Busted Nut Bar and Grill Coborn’s Deli Cub Deli & Bakery Culver’s Dugarel’s Bar and Grill Dunn Brothers Coffee Emily’s Bakery & Deli Froth and Cork Green Mill Restaurant & Bsr Hastings Bierstube Hastings Public House Jimmy John’s Lock & Dam Eatery M & H Gas Station Me & Julio Perkin’s Restaurant & Bakery Spiral Brewery Spiral Food-Co-op See Food Fight Page 3 Food Fight

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MN FoodShare is the time of year when our community comes together to fight hunger. Mayor Mary Fasbender is proclaiming a City-Wide food fight during MN Foodshare and Hastings Family Service invites the entire community to join the fight against hunger! All monetary gifts and pounds of food collected will be MATCHED proportionately by MN Foodshare.

Hastings Family Service is encouraging people to make a difference by joining a city-wide food fight to maximize the matching dollars for MN FoodShare. Gifts can be made safely online, or if you prefer to drop off a gift at HFS, you are welcome to do so. The HFS building remains closed to the public for safety reasons, but there are food carts in front of the Donation Center for your gifts of food, or a secure donation drop box where you can safely place a monetary donation if you prefer to drop it off.

A list of ideas to safely participate in MN Foodshare this year is available at www. hastingsfamilyservice.org and you are encouraged to register your event or food fight project on the website. “By registering, Hastings Family Service can help promote what you are doing and share your ideas with others,” said Amy Sutton, HFS Associate Director. “Everyone can get involved, have some fun, and collectively make a big impact on hunger in our community.” The website also provides links to posters and other resources to help with your food or fund drive.

According to Sutton, Hastings Family Service provided food shelf assistance to 73% more families in December compared to April last year. “It was an increase of 117% in the total number of people served within those families, but we have been able to meet the increased demand for food assistance because of the community’s support,” said Sutton. “It has been a challenging year, but we have much to be grateful for.”

MN Foodshare will run from March 1st – April 11th with all monetary gifts and gifts of food proportionately matched by MN Foodshare. Join the city-wide food fight and together we can knock out hunger!