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This deer season allows hunters to help area food banks while getting a tax deduction.
Hunters can choose to donate a part or their entire kill to the Sharing the Harvest program. The program is overseen by the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
The meat goes to food banks that feed those down on their luck.
"We look for families that have children and elderly families and we try and divert it that way first and then we do the rest. We have probably almost an increase 75 percent of families coming. Loss of jobs, stuff like that," said Brian Lengel of the Pine Grove Area Food Pantry.
There are a dozen Sharing the Harvest centers in our area.
"The hunter pays a $15 donation and we give them a paper to fill out which is a tax write-off and we can charge the game commission at the end of the year for the rest of the processing that we do, but to this point, we have never billed and this is our fourth year," said Mike Mease of Mease Meats, Inc.
Hunters who donate their deer said it's the right thing to do.
"It's more than we can possibly eat and I was fortunate to get one and I am fortunate to be able to go deer hunting and if I can share it, that's neat," said Harry Huss of Coatesville.
"It makes me realize how fortunate I am to have food on the table every night and it makes me want to help people that don't have food on the table," said Walker Glunz of Friedensburg.
Hunters can choose to donate a part or their entire kill to the Sharing the Harvest program. The program is overseen by the Pennsylvania Game Commission.
The meat goes to food banks that feed those down on their luck.
"We look for families that have children and elderly families and we try and divert it that way first and then we do the rest. We have probably almost an increase 75 percent of families coming. Loss of jobs, stuff like that," said Brian Lengel of the Pine Grove Area Food Pantry.
There are a dozen Sharing the Harvest centers in our area.
"The hunter pays a $15 donation and we give them a paper to fill out which is a tax write-off and we can charge the game commission at the end of the year for the rest of the processing that we do, but to this point, we have never billed and this is our fourth year," said Mike Mease of Mease Meats, Inc.
Hunters who donate their deer said it's the right thing to do.
"It's more than we can possibly eat and I was fortunate to get one and I am fortunate to be able to go deer hunting and if I can share it, that's neat," said Harry Huss of Coatesville.
"It makes me realize how fortunate I am to have food on the table every night and it makes me want to help people that don't have food on the table," said Walker Glunz of Friedensburg.
