Amanda and Joe Monty said 'I do' in a courthouse ceremony last June. Their big wedding celebration had to be pushed back to January and scaled down to just 30 family and friends because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"So many people are going through so much, and have much bigger issues than just having to change a guest list or a date of their wedding," Amanda Monty said. "We were really happy to give back in a bigger way."
The couple's caterer, Chef Jolie Oree-Bailey of Low Country Quisine, suggested the Montys and another couple who had credit with the caterer donate it to help stock the shelves at Minnie's Food Pantry in Plano.
"There are so many families that are suffering from food insecurity because of the pandemic," Oree-Bailey said. "My mom always told me, even if you have a little you can always share."
Oree-Bailey worked with her food vendor and supplier to turn the couples' credit into 72 boxes of food; cereal, beans, mustard, catsup, and more.
"When you look down right here, you see breakfast. You see lunch," Minnie's Food Pantry Founder Cheryl Jackson said giggling. "This is just amazing! Thank you so much!"
"That feeds a lot more than the 125 we were intending to feed for our wedding," Joe Monty said.
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Jackson said the need at Minnie's Food Pantry increased in 2020, from 1.3 million meals to 5 million meals. She doesn't expect that to let up this year.
"I'm glad she and her husband said 'I do', and what they said 'I do' to is; I do believe that every person deserves a meal, every child deserves a meal, every family deserves a meal," Jackson said. "For the next 100 days, I hope they sit at the table and go 'somebody else is eating because we got married.'"
