The Jolly Trolley Food Drive of Metro Bus is back, hoping to help those in central Minnesota who really need our help through this holiday. The Jolly Trolley Food Drive event started in 2011 and has collected nearly 19 tons of food and more than $23,500 in cash donations, including 6,440 pounds of groceries and $2,580 in donations last year.

This year, Jolly Trolley asked those who can donate online by clicking here to donate, or you can donate non-perishable food and money to Metro Bus Transit Center, Mobility Training Center or Operations Center, Townsquare Media office, or at 12 The Royal Tire location on Highway 10 and Roosevelt Road before the 12th.

Your cash and non-perishable food donations will be donated to regional food shelves, including The St. Cloud Area Salvation Army, Catholic Charity Emergency Services Center, and Promis Neighborhood in central Minnesota.

If you don't have the ability to provide cash, but you have some extra boxes or canned food in your storage room to donate, then you don't know how much donation you need. No matter how big or small, if we do our best, then overall it will make a big difference. If you can make a cash donation, as a retail customer, every dollar on the food shelf can buy 5 times as much food. Food shelves can also buy items that meet specific needs, as well as items they may be short of. In the 21st Annual Charity Challenge provided by the Norman C. Skalicky Foundation and the Central Minnesota Community Foundation, all December donations will be matched up to a maximum of $100,000.