Realtors, Lake Anne Brew House Collect Donations for South Lakes HS Food Pantry

Updated at 2:35 p.m. — Includes updated numbers for the food pantry.

The holidays may be over, but one business at Lake Anne Plaza is continuing the season of giving and holiday spirit into 2019.

The Lake Anne Brew House (11424 Washington Plaza W.) hosted an ugly sweater fundraising party yesterday (Jan. 6) to benefit the food pantry at South Lakes High School.

Several realtors, including Rob Cox, Mary Miceli, Carol Welsh and Ben and Kristi Guidry from Long & Foster Real Estate, helped host the party, according to a Lake Anne Plaza Facebook post.

The Lake Anne Brew House credited Long & Foster in Reston with the idea for the party and sponsorship of the pizza.

The event collected non-perishable food items and personal products — along with a nearly $500 donation — for the school’s food pantry, where nearly 730 students can “shop” for food and toiletries.

The food pantry is designed to help close the hunger and nutrition gap for the 30 percent of South Lakes High School students who are on the free and reduced lunch program, according to the school. The food pantry distributes more than 175 bags of groceries and toiletries to more than 95 families each week.

Roberta Gosling, one of the founders of the pantry, told Reston Now that students from Langston Hughes Middle School, Terraset Elementary School and other South Lakes High school pyramid schools are coming to the pantry.

Since opening in March 2017, the food pantry has given out more than 8,000 bags of food, she said.

Photo via Lake Anne Plaza/Facebook