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Farmworkers Self-Help To Distribute Baskets, More Food Needed To Help

By GEOFF FOX | The Tampa Tribune

Published: December 23, 2008

DADE CITY - Officials at Farmworkers Self-Help Inc. will distribute toys and food baskets Wednesday to about 320 families served by the Tommytown-based agency.
The organization will distribute the items Christmas Eve between 6 a.m. and noon at the Pasco County Fairgrounds on State Road 52 near Pasco High School. Farmworkers has administered the Christmas program for 25 years.
Margarita Romo, executive director of the agency, said that all of the program's families will receive food today, but the food baskets aren't as full as in the past.
"We didn't get as much food as we would have liked, so we just made smaller baskets," Romo said. "Everyone's so afraid about the economy. I think we got half of what we usually get. I reached out to Bob Loring [executive director of Toys for Tots of East Pasco] and other churches.
"Some of them came through with more stuff. Just enough to finish it out actually. We're going to be OK, but man, we were kind of like, 'We have a lot of families here. What will we do if it doesn't come through?'
"We always kick ourselves at the end because God has always provided."
Romo said there were enough toys to go around, but more donated food is welcome, especially items such as flour, pinto beans and rice. Everyone who benefits from the giveaway is registered with her organization.
"We know just about everybody and know if they're really in need or not," Romo said. "We're trying to make sure that the kids we serve are the ones who really need it. Some won't go to [other charities] because they're too shy, but they'll come here."