News About Town: The Monday, April 27 agenda for the Board of Commissioners meeting posted is online. Once again, the meeting will be held via Zoom, and viewable on YouTube. The town website describes the process for public comment during distance meetings. Item 4 on the agenda is a discussion on COVID-19 Issues. The Board will hear from a panel with a variety of expertise and understanding of the issue:

• Emergency Operations Center Commander Rob Kinniburgh

• Novant Health Matthews Medical Center President Roland Bibeau

• Novant Health Director Infection Prevention (Charlotte and Virginia Market) Rhonda Mull

• Mecklenburg County Commissioner Susan Rodriguez-McDowell

• Matthews Chamber of Commerce President Kim Gossage

News Around Town: “When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.”  ~Fred Rogers

In Matthews it’s pretty obvious where to find the HELPers, and sometimes the helpers need helpers. With over 700,000 unemployment claims in NC, there’s a high demand on food pantries. The Matthews HELP Center is not immune to increased demands and their shelves need some filling. What does the HELP Center need?

• Canned items: Chicken, Chili, Carrots, Peaches, Mixed Fruit

• Boxed Items: Grits, Mashed potatoes, Pancake Mix (with syrup), Saltine Crackers Drinks: Juice, Juice boxes, Horizon Flavored boxed milk

• Additional Items: Spaghetti sauce, Ramen noodles, Microwaveable Kids Cuisine Meals, Microwaveable Shells & Cheese cups, Microwaveable Chef Boyardee cups

One Good Thing: Mask up, gloves on. We’re announcing a food drive and contest!

First, we’re looking for businesses and neighborhood associations to be collection locations for canned foods. Each collection spot will compete for getting the most donations. The spot that collects the most goods will be the A Big Beacon Deal and will receive a one-year top-shelf advertising package from the Beacon! Want to collect, but don’t need advertising? We’ll hook you up with some amazing Beacon swag. Ready to collect cans for the greater good? Email us and we’ll get you all set up. The deadline to sign up as a collection location is this Friday at 5 pm.

So maybe you don’t want to collect cans, but would like to donate money to the HELP Center? They take donations online and by mail. When you give, let them know it’s part of the Beacon Drive. We will match monetary donations dollar for dollar between now and May 15, 2020, up to $1,000.