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Frequently Asked Questions

What is Walk & Knock?

The Cowlitz County Walk & Knock Food Drive is a 33 year old, all volunteer non-profit food drive that has collected millions of pounds of food and thousands of dollars in donations. All food and financial contributions are given to the Lower Columbia CAP Help Warehouse to help those in need within our community.

 

What’s going on with Walk & Knock this year?

To keep everyone safe this year, Walk & Knock is changing the way the
food drive will be conducted. We’re calling it “Drive & Drop.” We will
NOT be inserting paper bags in The Daily News or have volunteers pick
them up.

Instead, we will have four “Drive & Drop-off” sites throughout Cowlitz
County including the Lower Columbia CAP Help Warehouse in Longview.

They are:

  • Lower Columbia CAP Help Warehouse – Longview (parking lot off
    12th Avenue between Maple & Vandercook)
  • Walmart – Longview Ocean Beach
  • Three Rivers Mall – Kelso (Penny’s north parking lot)
  • Riverside Park – Lexington 

How does that work?

At each site, you will be asked to stay in your vehicle and turn off your engine. A trained, masked volunteer will greet you and remove the donation from your vehicle and put them in a big “tote” box. When full, the boxes will be fork lifted into a donated semi-trailer for delivery to the food bank.

When is it?

Always the first Saturday of December. That’s Dec. 4th this year.
From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

 

What if I can’t donate food that day?

We will NOT be picking up food donations this year. If you can’t drive your food donation to one of the four drop-off sites, we encourage you to make a financial donation here or by sending a tax-deductible check to Walk & Knock at 1526 Commerce Avenue, Longview, WA 98632. Or we will have donation barrels from Dec. 1–14 at Fred Meyer on Ocean Beach Highway, the two Walmart locations in Longview and Grocery Outlet on Ocean Beach Highway.

Why are you doing this?

To keep everyone safe from COVID. By not having approximately 1,000 volunteers out collecting bags, we reduce the risk of infection. Instead, we have designed four drop-off sites managed for low-risk donation drop offs.

How can I help?

By donating non-perishable food, toiletries or money. With our “Drive & Drop” method this year, we need fewer volunteers. You could organize your neighborhood, offering to pick up your neighbors’ donations and bring them to a “Drive & Drop” site. Please do so safely. Remember to remain a safe distance and wear masks.

Is this a permanent change?

We don’t think so. Besides gathering millions of pounds of food over 33 years, Walk & Knock has engaged thousands of volunteers, many of them young people, introducing them to the joys and value of volunteering. It’s a win-win we hope to continue once it’s safe again.