Food donations pay fines & feed hungry at Vernon Area Public Library

Vernon Area Public Library patrons who owe fines for overdue materials can clear their obligations with canned goods and other nonperishable food donations during the library’s "Food for Fines" promotion in September.

Through September 30, patrons will receive a $1 reduction in their owed fines for each nonperishable food item donated at the library. Donated items will be brought to the Vernon Township Food Pantry and the Northern Illinois Food Bank by program partners Von Sydow’s Moving and Storage, Inc., and Move for Hunger. More than 1,600 food items were collected at last year’s Food for Fines program in September 2012.

A grocery list on the Northern Illinois Food Bank website suggests donations of canned or dried beans, canned tuna, processed cheese, soups, stews, peanut butter, canned fruits and vegetables, cereal, flour, pasta, rice, oatmeal, condiments, and beverages.

This is the library’s second partnership with local food pantries this year. This summer, the library started an organic vegetable garden as part of its “Dig Into Reading” summer reading theme. The produce from that garden is donated to the Sharing Hands Food Pantry in Indian Creek as it is harvested. The library has donated more than 180 pounds of fresh vegetables to local families through that program so far this summer.