Kane County Farm Bureau holds annual shopping spree for local food pantries

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Kane County Farm Bureau Manager Steve Arnold sets the rules for Kane County Undersheriff Amy Johnson (center) and Kane County State's Attorney Jamie Mosser (far right) before they participated in the Kane County Farm Bureau's 23rd Check Out Shopping Spree. Johnson collected food for Support Over Stigma of St. Charles while Mosser collected food for Elgin's Community Crisis Center. (Sandy Bressner)

The whistle rang and they were off. With shopping carts decked out in glittery tinsel, Kane County Undersheriff Amy Johnson and Kane County State’s Attorney Jamie Mosser took off down the aisles of the Jewel-Osco in Batavia for the Kane County Farm Bureau’s 23rd Check Out Shopping Spree.

Johnson collected $2,838.96 worth of nonperishable food for Support Over Stigma in St. Charles. Mosser collected $2,020.42 worth of food for Elgin’s Community Crisis Center. Johnson may have claimed victory over Mosser, but there were no losers.

Peanut butter, soups and pasta sauce were the most sought-after items.

Johnson and Mosser took part in the shopping spree to give back to the community.

“To do it in a fun way that will actually get people to see what a need there is in the community,” Mosser said.

Support Over Stigma is a nonprofit dedicated to providing mental health support to members of the military, veterans, first responders and their families.

“Most people don’t know that right now we have five National Guard units from the state of Illinois currently deployed and those families are now operating on half the budget as single parents trying to make ends meet,” Support Over Stigma Founder and CEO Zoeie Kreiner said. “It’s not enough just to feed them at Christmas and Easter. We need to feed them all year long and the dollar doesn’t stretch as much as it used to.”