17-05-2025
Donations pour in to Knoxville food pantry after TikTok star's call to action
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — Local nonprofit Knox Pride posted on social media Wednesday that their Community and Resource Center's food pantry was practically empty. With no access to funding and Second Harvests funding being cut, the organization was at a loss for what to do.
'We have always been very transparent here with the community and we were out of just about everything. We needed help real bad,' said James Owens, a manager of Knox Pride's Community Closet.
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Until one influencer from Mississippi decided to lend a hand and give the organization a lifeline. A TikTok star by the name of Matthew Bounds, known as 'Your Barefoot Neighbor', is a longtime follower of Knox Pride and knew he had to step in. He reposted the organizations call for help in a video where he challenged his followers to provide for the organization and they did that, and than some.
'Usually if I do stuff like this, I reach out to the organization first. There's a lot of planning that goes into it. But something told me, just hurry up and get that video made and let's get it out there for everyone. In America in 2025, there shouldn't be a kid that's going to bed hungry,' Bounds told 6 News.
The response was overwhelming. So many packages poured in that Knox Pride is having to utilize extra storage space and rent a larger vehicle to keep up with donations.
'Something like this is great because we don't have to limit them. We don't have to say, 'here's one bag for your family of six. That's all we have for you right now.' This is going to help a lot of people for sure, ' Owens said.
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Bound's video didn't solely inspire food donations, Knox Pride raised enough money to cover two months of rent for the pride center. From just one video, they are now better equipped to continue serving Knoxville.
'I knew that they did a lot of community work. I did not realize until I posted that video just what a big part of the community they are,' Bounds said. 'I've had so many people sending me messages and telling me that they fed them when they needed it.'
'I just want to say thank you to him. He is literally an angel. I don't know how he would have gotten through the next few months without him,' Owens added.
Knox Pride shares they have received around 5,000 packages on Friday alone. Bounds told 6 News that he hopes that people realize you don't have to have a platform to make a difference and help where it really matters.
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Knox Pride is always looking for volunteers if anyone is interested in helping especially recently with the abundance of food, the organization needs hands getting this food out of packages and on those shelves. The pantry is open from Tuesday to Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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