‘Food girl’ collects 40,000 pounds of goods for the needy

By Brandon Shulleeta
| 978-7245

Teenager Nicole Muller decided a year ago to knock on doors in her neighborhood to collect food for the hungry.

What the 17-year-old Albemarle resident had not planned on was bringing in 40,000 pounds of food from 38 states in one year, being the voice of a food bank TV advertisement and being known by some in the community as merely “the food girl.“

After support from neighbors on Wind River Road near Foxfield, she set a lofty goal of collecting literally a ton of food, then she matched a 10,000-pound goal and the pounds of food have since more than quadrupled. However, the food collections have started to taper off some recently, Muller said, which she attributes to the appeal of her group being “new” having faded.

Muller plans to have another food drive next month. The 40,000 pounds she’s collected thus far, through her Neighbors-4-Neighbors group, equates to more than 31,000 meals. Most of it goes to the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

Collecting an unmatched amount of food has not gone unnoticed; she was recently named the teenager of the year for the Kiwanis International Club’s Capital District, to add to many recognitions.

But the extra attention is more frightening than exciting for Muller, who says she’s uncomfortable with the spotlight - and especially TV cameras.

The rising senior at Western Albemarle High School recalls once being pulled out of class by a local TV station for an interview.

“Oh my God,“ Muller said in an interview on Saturday. “It was like my worse nightmare.“

But Muller figures the extra attention is necessary to spread the word of her group, and to ultimately collect more food.

Muller is aiming to up her food collection total to 50,000 pounds this fall, and she has new collection strategies in mind, such as having local elementary school students compete to see who can collect the most food.

Muller also accepts monetary donations, which she gives to the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.

The help from the community and knowing how the donations touch people is what keeps her going.

Muller recalled a time at a grocery story when an elderly couple, whom she didn’t know, recognized her and gave her food to have donated.
She also recalled a time last year when her mother dropped off donations at the food bank and was greeted with a hug by a recipient.
“She said, ‘God bless you,‘“ Nicole Muller said. “You could tell she really needed it.“

To donate to Neighbors-4-Neighbors, e-mail Nicole Muller at . For information about the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank, including drop-off locations, visit http://www.brafb.org.