CHARLESTON, W.Va. – Despite canceling their annual banquet and guided hunts, the Governor’s One Shot Committee (GOS) is still working to raise money, as well as donate harvested deer to benefit West Virginia food banks. The GOS’s main mission is to raise money to fund the Hunters Helping the Hungry (HHH) program which uses those funds to offset the cost of processing deer donated to the program. This year, the GOS is donating any money raised directly to Mountaineer Food Bank.

“The GOS event has raised over $600,000 to support the Hunters Helping the Hungry program and the Mountaineer Food Bank. While the main aspects of this year’s event have been canceled, the need to support the critical efforts of the food bank remains,” said GOS President Glenn Adrian. “We’ve asked our sponsors to continue supporting the mission of the event with every dollar donated going directly to the food banks. In addition, our volunteer guides have been asked to participate in the early doe season and to donate their harvest to the HHH. These donations will provide tens of thousands of meals to hungry West Virginians.”

Hunters Helping the Hungry was established in 1992 and has been supported by the Governor’s One Shot, Inc., since 2008. All deer selected for the program are donated to either the Mountaineer Food Bank or Facing Hunger Foodbank. There is no cost to hunters who wish to participate in the program. From the program’s inception, hunters and participating processors have designated 27,066 deer for donation resulting in nearly 1.4 million meals to families and individuals throughout West Virginia.

“As people struggle to deal with the realities of the pandemic, we need to ensure nutrition for our citizens does not suffer. The Governor’s One Shot Committee and Hunters Helping the Hungry provide crucial protein to some of the most vulnerable families in West Virginia,” said Commissioner of Agriculture Kent Leonhardt. “I urge hunters who typically donate a harvested deer to the program to consider donating again this year or making a monetary contribution instead.”

For more information about the Governor’s One Shot Committee, contact Wendy Greene at 304-558-2754 or Wendy.L.Greene@wv.gov.

For more information about Hunters Helping the Hungry, contact Judy Channell at (304) 924–6211 or Judy.A.Channell@wv.gov.

The West Virginia Department of Agriculture protects plant, animal and human health through a variety of scientific, regulatory and consumer protection programs. The Commissioner of Agriculture is one of six statewide elected officials who sits on the Board of Public Works.