Caked in snow, face flush from the freezing temperatures, Mark Saylor’s face showed no signs of annoyance from winter conditions, his expression beaming as he excitingly greeted customers leaving the downtown Harding’s Saturday morning.

Saylor, the pastor of Dowagiac’s Liberty Chapel, was too busy with his mission to be distracted by the blowing snow and chilling wind. Saylor, along with his son and volunteers from his congregation, was asking for people to donate a few of their dollars to the local Feed the Hungry food drive.

“We’re collecting either food or money donations, which will help people with serious financial need,” Saylor said.

Saylor and his fellow church members have volunteered to collect money for the program since it began four years ago. Standing in front of the truck of one the two vehicles provided by the C. Wimberley auto dealerships for the drive, they had already collected a sizable amount of donated cash and food from people stopping by.

“We’re making a difference here in the community,” Saylor said. “We’re willing to help anybody in need. We always like to say, ‘this isn’t just our church, this our community.’”

The private donations are just one of several means of funding the program receives during its annual month long blitz. A large amount of donations come from local businesses as well, many of which have contributed to the drive for several years.

However, this year presented a challenge for the drive, which is organized by the C. Wimberley Automotive Group. The company kicks off the donation campaign the week after Thanksgiving; however, the fact that this year’s holiday fell later in November has shortened the amount of time it has to reach the $15,000 goal it hoped to achieve by Christmas.

Despite this, a number of local companies have helped pick up some of the slack, upping the size of their annual contribution.

“It’s been great news for us,” said Jim Allen, the head organizer for the drive. “Not everyone is out of the recession yet, and is still feeling the sting, so the fact they stepped up this year has been great.”

The program has collected $12,000 in donations so far, dispersing $2,000 of that already to purchase food gift cards for a number of Cass County families, Allen said. This year, the company will be purchasing food at wholesale prices from Family Fare, after its’ original deal with the ACTION food pantry fell through.

“I gave the store a call and explained to them what happened,” Allen said. “They told me, ‘no problem, we got this.’”

In addition to the increased funding from regular contributors, a number of companies have also chipped in to help, without even being asked beforehand. Midwest Energy has promised to chip in more than $300 to help the organization reach its goal, Allen said.

Despite the outpouring of support, Allen said he wasn’t shocked by the community’s generosity.

“Dowagiac always does this,” Allen said. “They feel pretty strongly about local stuff, and they always rally around a good cause.”

While Allen said he wasn’t sure if Feed the Hungry will reach its goal in time for Christmas, he encouraged people to contribute whatever they can for the cause.

“We’re going to be within striking distance of our goal, and we could use some more help to get there,” he said.

On Friday, volunteers from around the city will help unload the purchased food items for distribution to local families. The event will begin at noon, at the C. Wimberley Ford dealership in Dowagiac.

Companies and individuals interested are encouraged to contact Allen at 269-779-1691.