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Donated venison goes to local organizations
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Forsyth County News
How to help
To donate money, a freezer or deer meat, contact Joe Schuster at (678) 347-6608 or e-mail joe1resource@gmail.com. For more information on Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry, go online at gafhfh.org.

A local nonprofit organization has donated deer meat to Forsyth County charities to help feed those in need during the holiday season.

It was the third year that organizations like Unseen Hand Food Ministry, Abba House and No Longer Bound have received "generous portions of lean, protein-rich venison" from the local chapter of Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry.

Drug and alcohol rehabilitation ministry No Longer Bound received a box of venison Dec. 23.

"It's a perfect time of year for us to receive this," said Blair Kirkpatrick, facilities manager for the drug and alcohol rehabilitation center for men.

Local hunters donated the deer, which was taken to Wilkes Deer Processing for packaging.

Wilkes Deer Processing employee Ray Lynn said hunters may exceed donations from 2007 of more than 1,000 pounds of meat.

"We actually are ahead of last year's pace," he said.

Joe Schuster, director of the local chapter of Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry, said there are a variety of ways to prepare venison.

"Typically, a charity will take it in and use it in a soup kitchen or a mass meal type of setup, where they'll make spaghetti or chili or hamburgers with it," said Schuster, adding that deer is a desirable food.

"There's virtually no fat in deer," he said. "It's extremely lean meat. People who are looking for healthy, protein-enriched meat sources ... this is perfect for them."

Money raised through donations from the Market Place Boulevard Wal-Mart and the Cumming Archery Association provided the funds for processing the deer meat.

"We've enjoyed working with this program and are proud to support it," said Wal-Mart store manager Russ Hilsher.

Deer donations will be accepted through Jan. 31, the end of archery season.

Schuster said the program is good for hunters who "have already filled their freezers but don't want to stop hunting."

"They can donate their harvest, and they won't have to pay a single thing," he said.

Schuster founded the local chapter of the organization a couple years ago. The national organization was established in 1994 with the goal of helping feed America's hungry through donated venison.