The Cullman Times Cares & Shares food drive has officials closed for 2012, with another record year of giving from the community.

The total for the food drive reached nearly 117,000 pounds of food through canned goods deliveries and checks from individuals and organizations throughout Cullman County. The total surpasses last year’s drive of 108,000 pounds.

Money and food collected through Cares & Shares goes directly to the Cullman Caring for Kids Food Bank, which is meeting the needs of more than 500 local families per month. Cullman Caring director Javon Daniel said the demand on the food bank has been on the rise in recent years due to tough economic conditions for many families. The food provided by The Times’ Cares & Shares will stock the food bank for many months to come.

“Our Cullman Times Editor, David Palmer, did a remarkable job once again this year chairing our annual food drive. He led an effort that brought in a record amount of food in the five years we’ve been doing this and I am very proud of what he and his team accomplished,”  said Times Publisher Bill Morgan. “Our sister newspaper in Greenville, Texas, beat us by a little over 20,000 pounds this year. I guess it’s only fair after Cullman took a shillelagh to them in last year’s drive. It’s remarkable to think that the two community’s food banks benefited with more than 125 tons of food raised in this year’s effort. That  means there will be a lot fewer kids who will be going to bed with hunger on their minds.”

As in years past, the final day of the food drive brought a lot of surprises and excitement as individuals, civic organizations and others responded with donations of all sizes to push the final total to a record level. This year also marked the beginning  of a friendly competition among area schools for a traveling trophy. The inaugural winner is Cullman High School.

“It’s been said many times before but it bears repeating. Cullman County residents are the most amazing people in the world when it comes to caring about other people and being there to help We saw a group of Cullman Lions Club members coming in with a $9,000 check and Gloria Williams with Community Lions handing over a $500 check. The employees with the City of Cullman raised more donations than they ever had in the past.

And for the first time, Oktoberfest and Supreme Beverages, an official sponsor of the event, joined forces to sell chances on a decorative stein for the food drive. The effort raised $507, which translated into more than 3,500 pounds of food.

“There was Elton Bouldin, principal at Cullman High with more than $2,100 that the students raised and Andy Huddleston with Cullman Casting Corp. with boxes of food from employees. There were dozens of individuals with checks or food in varying amounts, some wanting to remain anonymous,” Morgan said.

Generous gifts also came from West Point Intermediate National Elementary Honor Society, Bama Home Builders, the Cullman County Republican Party, Longview Church of God Kids Ministry, and Sheriff Mike Rainey.

“No matter who it was or how much they brought, each said the same thing — ‘I wish it were more.’ Cullman truly lives up the name we gave this food drive, ‘Cullman Cares & Shares.’”