Hawkins County motorcycle club hosts benefit ride for Hunger First food pantry

Faith Little
·2 min read
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KINGSPORT, Tenn. (WJHL) — A local chapter of a motorcycle club named Enforcers MC hosted a benefit ride on Saturday to support Hunger First, a non-profit pantry that provides cost-free food items to area residents.

Hunger First provides free grocery items with no questions asked to residents of Kingsport and surrounding communities, according to a release from the organization. It’s located at 1697 Lynn Garden Drive in Kingsport but serves many in Church Hill, Sullivan County, Greene County and Scott County, Virginia.

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The Enforcers MC’s website said there are two chapters in East Tennessee, with Hawkins County’s based in Surgoinsville and Cocke County’s in Newport. The release said the club is comprised of former and current members of the military, law enforcement and first responders.

Saturday’s event was reportedly the chapter’s first time doing a benefit ride. Some riders from Cocke County attended the benefit, as well.

The ride was in the works for months after the chapter’s club leader contacted Hunger First’s Executive Director Mike Gillis. The release said the club wanted to show appreciation to the food pantry for all it has done for the community.

“These guys came forward and said they wanted to help us, and it meant the world to us,” Gillis said in the release. “It’s really humans being human. It shows me we’re making an impression on people and providing a shining light to people who need help the most.”

The ride consisted of around twenty people, who began in Church Hill, winded through the mountains and ended at Hunger First in Kingsport. The release said riders presented pantry staff with food donations and $450 in monetary donations.

According to the release, the Enforcers MC of Hawkins County hopes to host more benefit rides for Hunger First in the future.

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