Remember when the storms hit the East Coast this winter — they were buried in 3-4 feet of snow and the power went out for about 10 days? Well, in Maryland, close to the West Virginia border, power company employees who were working round the clock needed hot meals in a BIG way.
So when the power company called Calvin Riggleman of Bigg Riggs Farm, his team swung into action. Several years ago, Calvin bought the local commercial kitchen in order to make value-added products with his fruit and veggies, like jams and salsas, and helps another 100 farmers do the same. So out of that country kitchen they cooked up 10,000 meals in 9 days. The kitchen ran 24/7 with everyone making food trays and sleeping on the floor between shifts. Dinner prep was 7:00-10:00pm; then they came back at 11:30 to start breakfast, which went out at 3:00am to transport to the crews. Heck, even his partner’s grandma came in to help!
So when we say that veterans are meeting the challenge of food security in America, think about Calvin!