Delmarva Public Media Partners with Maryland Food Bank for Year-End Campaign

SALISBURY, MD---A donation to Delmarva Public Media (DPM) this fall not only will help keep unique programming on local airwaves, but also will assist in feeding families on the Eastern Shore.

Comprised of Salisbury University’s WSCL 89.5 FM and WSDL 90.7 FM, and the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s WESM 91.3 FM, the three-station partnership hosts its annual end-of-year campaign November 16-December 31. Ten percent of all contributions received during that time will benefit the Maryland Food Bank Eastern Shore.

The Community Foundation of the Eastern Shore will match DPM’s donations to the food bank up to $2,500, allowing supporters’ contributions to go even farther.

“With the advent of COVID-19, we know many families in our listening area are struggling more now than ever,” said Gerry Weston, DPM general manager. “By supporting the Maryland Food Bank, we are helping to ensure they have food on the table this winter.

“In turn, this campaign also allows us to continue celebrating the new Delmarva Public Media partnership by allowing our stations to serve and inform our community in a new way by continuing to provide listeners with the local programming; classical, jazz and folk music; and news they can’t find anywhere else on the Delmarva Peninsula.”

“This pandemic is a crisis unlike any other that the Maryland Food Bank has experienced,” said Jennifer Small, director, regional programs, Maryland Food Bank Eastern Shore Branch. “The Maryland Food Bank was built for this. We are providing the most critical need, food, across the state – locally right here on the Eastern Shore.”

Prior to the onset of COVID-19, the food bank’s Maryland Hunger Map showed that nearly 1.5 million residents experienced food insecurity. COVID-19-related job loses and other circumstances have added nearly a million more to that total, Small said. Since the coronavirus began affecting portions of the state in March, the amount of food distributed by the organization has increased by 93 percent, or approximately 36 million pounds.

For more information about the Maryland Food Bank, visit the organization's website.

DPM serves listeners regionally in Maryland, Delaware and Virginia, and worldwide via online streaming. To make a contribution to its fall campaign, or for more information, call 410-543-6220 or visit the DPM website.