BREWER – Staff at City Hall and the Brewer Middle School collected 1,226 nonperishable food items and $100 in cash for those in need during their annual holiday food drive, which concluded Friday.

According to Economic Development Director Drew Sachs, who initiated the food drive at City Hall, the total is more than three times the 400-item goal set when the food drive began in late November. Last year, city employees collected more than 250 items in three weeks for the Brewer Food Pantry at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church.

Sachs said Tuesday that the collection effort this year got a healthy boost with the additional participation of the Brewer Public Library and the Brewer Middle School, where staff and students collected almost 1,000 items.

The bulk of what was collected was earmarked for the pantry at St. Patrick’s for use after the holidays, when charitable giving slows and food cupboard shelves become bare. The $100 donation to the food drive, given by Charlotte and Barney Thompson of Bangor, also is slated for the pantry.

Nearly 100 items were provided earlier in December to the employees of Eastern Fine Paper who lost their jobs as part of the company’s bankruptcy and reorganization.

Plans for next year include expanding the effort by involving other city schools and the Brewer Auditorium.