The trailer parked outside of Dowagiac’s Napa Ridge Auto Parks can only mean one thing: that Christmas is fast approaching, and with it the need for hundreds of pounds of food for needy families.

Once again, the local auto parts dealer is teaming up with the sisters of the Zeta Chi Sorority and students and staff with Dowagiac Middle School to collect and deliver food for more than a dozen families in the community, in time for the holiday season. The organizations are asking for donations of canned goods or nonperishable food items, which can be left at the store on Division Street up through Friday.

Napa Ridge has been organizing the annual food drive for the past 20 or so years, said manager Dan Mather.

“We did it originally by ourselves, before the sorority and school became involved,” Mather said. “We knew this was the time of year when everyone needed some help.”

As in previous years, the store has parked a trailer, provided to them by Mike and Leslie Malin of MTL Lawncare, out in front of their store to help advertise for the food drive.

“Back when we first started we had the theme of ‘help us fill the trailer,’” Mather said. “Because of how the cold it gets during the winter we store the food inside the store, but we still the use the trailer to let people we still do the drive every year.”

It was around 10 years ago when Zeta Chi began to help manage the drive. Today, using a list of families provided by the middle school, the donated food is sorted and distributed to homes around Dowagiac. Last year, 13 families received food, delivered to their doors by volunteers.

The store has accepted cash donations for the drive in the past as well, using the money to purchase hams, milk and other fresh items to go out with the donated goods.

This Friday, volunteers will take everything that’s been collected with the drive up to the middle school, where it will be sorted and distributed for delivery. Organizers are hoping that as many as 15 families will be able to benefit from the drop-offs this year.

“It’s just awesome, it’s so unbelievable,” Mather said. “It’s good when the community comes together.”