The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank will host a Flag Pole Dedication and Flag Raising Ceremony on November 8, 2018. The event will be held at the Food Bank’s Williamsport Healthy Food Hub (3301 Wahoo Drive). It is open to the public and will begin at 10:00 a.m. with light refreshments following the ceremony.

The event will honor local active and veteran military personnel and feature the Korean War Honor Guard for the flag presentation and guest speaker, retired United States Air Force Colonel Dave Hall.

“We are honored to welcome Colonel Dave Hall to speak at our ceremony today as we raise our flag for the very first time at our Williamsport Healthy Food Hub. His immense service to our country inspires us in our work to help our veterans that have given so much but find themselves struggling now,” said Joe Arthur, Executive Director.

Colonel Hall graduated from the New York State College of Environmental Sciences and Syracuse University with degrees in Wildlife Management and Biology, and upon graduation was commissioned as a 2Lt from the USAF ROTC program. After a year of Air Force pilot training in Selma AL, he was assigned to Fairchild AFB in Spokane Washington as a B-52 copilot and almost immediately deployed to Guam for his first of four combat tours in South-east Asia during the Vietnam War. He served two tours as a copilot and then two more as the youngest B-52 aircraft commander in Strategic Air Command. All told he flew 80 combat missions including the 1972 Linebacker missions over Hanoi widely credited with bringing the North Vietnamese government back to the peace talks. In the mid-80s he was selected as one of the initial cadre instructor pilots for the B-1 aircraft, became the program’s first Chief of the Standardization Division, and later commanded the 337th Bomb Squadron. In the mid-90s he was the Wing Vice Commander at Ellsworth AFB in South Dakota, and then during the Kosovo conflict, Colonel Hall commanded the NATO Air Operations Coordination Center as well as the USAF personnel in Sarajevo Bosnia.

Following his 30-year Air Force career, Colonel Hall was the President and CEO of chambers of commerce, economic development agencies, and regional leadership programs in Massachusetts, New York, and then Pennsylvania.

Following his second retirement, Colonel Hall returned to his first love — the flight line. He ran flight schools at the Williamsport Regional Airport and Penn Valley Airport in Selinsgrove. He is also a frequent motivational and safety speaker for FAA aviation seminars. For each of the past five years he has been rated in the top 1% of flight instructors in the nation.

Within the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank’s 27 county service territory, 26% of households in central Pennsylvania receiving food assistance have at least one member that has served or is serving in the military. This startling statistic inspired the creation of MilitaryShare, a Fresh Express Program of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank designed to provide fresh, nutritious foods for military families. The Food Bank aims to be a leading provider of services that improve the lives of veterans and their families by providing the highest quality services; and continuing to create new opportunities in the areas of health.

Joe Arthur noted, “We started our Military Share program 4 years ago, and already it has grown into one of the largest privately-funded food assistance programs for veterans in our entire country. And while we are proud of our work, we know there are many more veterans in need.”

For the convenience and privacy of the individuals and families served, MilitaryShare distributions take place on-site at armories, VFW and AMVET locations. Last year, the Food Bank served 20,000 families through MilitaryShare.

Although the demand for food continues to rise, according to Feeding America, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is focused to meet the demands alongside the help of their collaborative network of partner agencies. And to one day provide access to enough nutritious food for everyone struggling with hunger in each of the 27 central Pennsylvania counties they serve. Together we make a difference. To find out more on the Food Bank and to RSVP to the event, please visit http://www.centralpafoodbank.org.

About the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank: The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to reduce hunger in 27 counties across Pennsylvania. By working with more than 1,000 local agencies and partner programs, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank serves nearly 140,000 people in need every month. For more information on the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and its mission to reduce hunger in Pennsylvania, visit centralpafoodbank.org or call 570-321-8023.