Kelly Snodgrass, president of J. Kelly Homes, was recently presented with the Rotarian of the Year award by outgoing Rotary President Shane Davies.

“Kelly exemplifies the true spirit of Rotary in his volunteer efforts with Rotary First Harvest,” Davies said, “He was involved with this program before he even became a member of Maple Valley Rotary.”

When Kelly was asked about how he got involved in Rotary First Harvest, he said a friend had given a donation in his name for his 30th birthday.

“Growing up I volunteered at my local food bank, so I was thrilled to learn about this program where I could continue to help hungry people,” Snodgrass said. You can find the Snodgrass family, friends and employees volunteering at least once a month at Rotary First Harvest.

Since its founding in 1982, Rotary First Harvest – a program of Rotary District 5030 has collected and distributed more than 135 million pounds of produce. The program acts as a conduit between farmers and the programs that serve hungry individuals and families in our region. Farmers are occasionally left with surplus fruits and vegetables that can’t be sold due to minor imperfections (such as carrots with two legs or apples that are the wrong size or color), or might not be harvested because of a glut on the market. Traditionally, this nutritious produce would be sent to a landfill or left to rot in the fields. Instead, the program directs it to those in need.

For more information about Rotary First Harvest visit the Web site. http://www.firstharvest.org/.

For information about Maple Valley Rotary, visiting a meeting, or attending or donating to our Nov. 14 auction, contact Patti Jenson, 425-432-1912.