PORTAGE, MI - There's a win-win situation when the Portage District Library sets the table for its Food for Fines program Oct. 10-16, organizers say.

The Portage District Library at 300 Library Lane.

Those who bring donations of food to the library not only provide needed Thanksgiving meals to the Portage Community Center's Food Basket program, they also have library fines waived.

The library will waive $1 in overdue fines for each item donated during the Monday-Sunday program. If you choose to donate ramen noodles, it takes five individual packages to receive a waiver of $1 in overdue fines.

"I love the Food for Fines program because it makes Portage a stronger community -- library users make a difference by helping to provide a Thanksgiving meal to those in need," said Christy Klien, Portage library director.

A special donation site will be located in the atrium of the library to the left of the entrance, near the DVD collection. Donations will not be taken at the checkout desk or any other public service desk either before or after the collection dates. Look for signs as you enter the library to direct you to the donation site.

The library accepts any type of non-expired canned or packaged items, but is especially looking for food for a holiday meal such as green beans, corn, peas, mixed vegetables, yams, sweet potatoes, pears, peaches, fruit cocktail, cranberry sauce, French-fried onions, stuffing, instant potatoes, cream of celery/mushroom soup, poultry/vegetable broth, turkey gravy mix, biscuit mix, cake mix with frosting and brownie/muffin mix.

For more information, go to http://portagelibrary.info/food/ or www.portagecommunitycenter.org/ holiday-programs.

Tom Haroldson covers Portage, Vicksburg and Schoolcraft for MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette. Contact him at haroldso@charter.net.