Small Plant City church makes big impact on Strawberry Festival workers

PLANT CITY, Fla. - Liberty Southern Baptist Church is a small church with a big mission to feed those working at the Plant City Strawberry Festival. 

"We spend about four or five months collecting food and getting beverages in to help feed the population over at the Strawberry Festival, mainly the workers," Gina Fredette, of Liberty Southern Baptist Church said.

Liberty Southern Baptist Church may be small in number, but it’s mighty in service.  

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"Last year, we served 49,700 meals in the ten-day period every year," Fredette explained. "So, a few years ago, our goal was to serve 5,000 meals. We did that the next year. We served 10,000 meals. So, every year it keeps increasing." 

Liberty Southern Baptist Church spend months collecting food and drinks to feed the workers. 

For more than a decade, the 85-member church initiated the free outreach effort. To date, it has served 280,000 hot meals to workers at the Strawberry Festival. 

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"The income that they make during the festival doesn't really cover enough for them to eat," said Fredette. "So, with the help of feeding Tampa Bay, we're able to feed them three square meals a day and help them get up on their feet." 

Liberty Southern Baptist Church has been feeding Strawberry Festival workers for the past decade. 

Linda Shrum has been traveling from Virginia to Florida for the past 10 years to lend a hand. 

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"It fills me with great joy," Shrum said. "It's my, I come down for the winter to Florida, and, these two weeks are my very favorite two weeks of all of the winter." 

To date, the church has served 280,000 hot meals to workers at the Strawberry Festival.

Festival workers are glad Shrum makes the trip. 

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"They are always here man, ready to go, man," said Armani Pitts, Strawberry Festival worker. "We get to come over here in the morning and just get some nourishment for the day." 

It’s a tight-knit community of faith making a significant impact in the Plant City community.

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