DH received a generous contribution from Integrity Chiropractic last week from their Get Well program which benefits a different local charity each month. Their donation will make the difference of 2,888 meals this month!
DH Advocate Teaches Food Resourcefulness Class
DH is piloting a nutritional education program to assist residents of local shelters with valuable information on how to prepare food cost effectively. Mariah Reynolds, a local teacher and community advocate with years of food knowledge, has passionately spearheaded the initiative and organized the first class earlier this week at F.R.E.S.H Start, a comprehensive educational, vocational, and economic housing program in Fort Walton Beach. A total of 12 women from the program attended the class.
Mariah provided folders and info-sheets on multiple recipes including how to prepare and roast a whole chicken, Chicken Soup with Rice and Noodles, and Italian Bean Stew. She also included safe handling tips and techniques on additional sheets.
DH brought a chicken 🙂
The whole room was truly engaged with the content and happy to have a discussion about food and food preparation. It makes a big difference for those attending to simply have something like this course to look forward to.
DH is grateful for Mariah’s passion to make this effort a reality. She is planning more of these classes throughout the year. We are so excited.
Bridging the Gap 2022
Food security is becoming less maintainable for families and individuals all over. The rising cost of virtually everything has driven more to feeding programs for assistance. DH and its retail food donors are challenged by supply chain shortages. Chronic hunger is developing into a much more pronounced and difficult situation to manage.
One in six children in the state of Florida faces food insecurity daily. Those suffering from chronic hunger in Florida require an additional $1.4 billion just to have enough food each year
DH just released its 2021 Annual Report. Click the link to learn more about hunger in Okaloosa and Walton County and DH’s operation for the past year.
Feeding programs are really struggling to meet the needs of their clients. There are simply not as much foods available as there once was. Since the end of February, DH has distributed 169,500 pounds of food for the year. DH is accustomed to moving 200k to 250k pounds a month. What we are experiencing is a significant decrease in food volume.
DH and Feeding the Gulf Coast have been meeting with various stores and their departments to educate about our program and remind them how much their contributions are appreciated. DH continues to work with FTGC to secure more stores.
Thank You For Recent Support
DH has been fortunate to receive some outstanding contributions from local businesses and supporters in February and March. We would like to show our appreciation for Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, BE-CI, Fifth Generation, Inc., among our loyal individual donors for their generous support.
Also big thank you to all our food donors and friends in the community that help DH mobilize food to feeding programs.
DH Supporter and Veteran Donates Turkeys and Food on Her Special Day
Today was a particularly special Veterans Day for Destin Harvest. Pam Powers, Destin resident, Retired Navy Chief Petty Officer, celebrated her birthday today by donating 20 turkeys and multiple bags of purchased groceries in the rain to DH. We are immensely grateful to those who serve, have served, and continue to serve in retirement.
Her donation will be distributed out today to recipient feeding programs in Okaloosa and Walton County. There will be numerous struggling households locally this Thanksgiving with plenty of good food on the table because of Pam’s awesome deed.
Thank you, Pam!! And Happy Birthday!!
Open Door Food Pantry
Santa Rosa Beach, FL
Blount House Community Food Pantry
Freeport, FL
Seventh Day Adventist of
Fort Walton Beach, FL
Made Miss Lydia’s day
Destin Harvest and The Matrix COC Distribute 80k lbs of Food to Programs in Okaloosa and Walton County
Feeding the Gulf Coast reached out to DH this week in effort to mobilize two 40k lb. freight-loads of food overages from distribution centers in Louisiana after Hurricane Ida into Okaloosa and Walton County. DH connected with The Matrix Community Outreach Center in Defuniak Springs to see if they would organize a distribution in Walton County to distribute the food directly to local feeding programs. DH organized the same effort in Okaloosa County. A total of 17 feeding programs showed up with pick up trucks, trailers, and U-hauls at Northwest Florida Fairgrounds and Defuniak Fairgrounds to receive all 80k pounds of food in the rain Wednesday morning. This was truly a massive aid to local hunger relief efforts in two counties.
Thank you Feeding the Gulf Coast, Northwest Florida Fairgrounds, The Matrix COC, and volunteers for making this all possible!
Thank You First Nation Group!
We are grateful and honored to announce that Destin Harvest has received a $5k matching grant from First Nation Group! This is a tremendous contribution to our operation and a great opportunity for others to make a donation in tandem! Every fourteen cents covers the operating cost for one pound of food, or meal, DH is able to deliver for free to feeding programs in NWFL! Thank you First Nation Group!!
Harbor Docks 35th Annual Charity Auction
Harbor Docks 35th Annual Charity Auction
Harbor Docks Charities invites you to join us for our 35th annual charity auction to be held at Harbor Docks Downstairs. The auction will be held Saturday, August 28, 2021 with doors opening at 6 pm for the silent auction and bidding starting at 7:30 pm for the live auction. A $20 cover charge includes wonderful food and a bidder number. World famous auctioneer Ted Corcoran will be hosting the festivities.
Incredible packages will be available during the silent and live auctions. Packages include week vacations in Aspen, Colorado, Deer Valley, Utah and Livingston, Montana. There are fishing trips, restaurant packages, and, as always, Yoshie’s catered Christmas or office party for up to 30 people.
Harbor Docks Charities helps fund the annual Take-A-Kid Fishing Day. More than 8,750 children have been treated to a day of fishing on local charter boats over the past 26 years. The first Sunday in November, local children are fed breakfast, taken fishing, treated to a fish fry, and given t-shirts, and rods and reels.
Harbor Docks Charities supports Destin Harvest in its drive to feed the hungry in our area. Also, for the past 26 years Harbor Docks has provided a Thanksgiving feast for more than 29,376 guests. Monies raised have helped fund numerous homes for Habitat for Humanity.
Through your participation, you will find that this event doesn’t just benefit the local children and those amongst us who need a helping hand. This provides a rewarding experience for everyone who wants to play a role in helping our community. If you are interested in donating an item for the auction please give us a call. We can always use your help. For more information concerning any of these events call Jackie at Harbor Docks. The number is 850.837.2506.
Thank You City Produce!
City Produce, local produce distributor in Fort Walton Beach, donated a pallet of strawberry milk to DH last week. Feeding programs were very excited to receive the refreshing treat. Our drivers never know what they will pick up and it’s tremendous feeling to find out what we will be handing off to grateful recipients each day. Without valuable donors like City Produce and local grocery stores, this simply would not be possible.
Thank you City Produce for giving back and putting smiles on the faces of volunteers and staff at local recipient charities that benefit from DH’s free deliveries.
City Produce, FWB FL 
Opportunity Place, FWB FL
Feeding Programs Rely on Local Food Rescue
Destin Harvest continues to distribute over 90k pounds of food to feeding programs in Okaloosa and Walton County each month. As of today, DH has distributed 544k pounds of food, or meals, to 37 local feeding programs for the year. These programs include soup kitchens, food pantries, food box programs, shelters, backpack programs, low-income daycare, meals on wheels, and others. Many of these programs depend solely on a DH truck every week to feed their regular clients. While people return to work this season, they and their family still benefit greatly from having access to local feeding programs.
Each pound of food, or meal, DH rescues and provides for free to a feeding program has an operation cost of 14 cents. Summer and early Fall are DH’s most operation-intense and expensive seasons. Please consider making a donation and becoming a Harvest Advocate to help us get food to those who need it most.
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