Volunteers from local Save-A-Lot stores bag up corn to be distributed during a recent Mobile Market / Photo by Bethany Prange
By the time the St. Louis Area Foodbank arrived in Moline Acres on Wednesday, a line of cars had already wound its way through a nearby parking lot.
Dozens of families in need waited patiently in those cars as Foodbank staff and volunteers from Good News Baptist Church in Jennings unloaded nearly 16,000 pounds of food.
As pallets of fresh cucumbers, onions, potatoes and carrots were unloaded into the parking lot of Gram Slam Storage, a group of volunteers from Save-A-Lot arrived to help.
For an hour, volunteers rebagged thousands of pounds of fresh produce so that each family in need could get their fair share.
Deacon Arstell Jones of Good News Baptist Church Food Pantry had alerted his pantry clients to let them know about this mobile market. The families, many with children, were anxious to accept the much-needed food.
Over the course of two hours, the Save-A-Lot and Good News Baptist Church volunteers loaded cars with bags of fresh sweet corn, sweet potatoes, grapes, meat and more. Save-A-Lot employees also handed out coupons for food in their stores.
By mid-afternoon, nearly 200 families had received food.
The St. Louis Area Foodbank hosts mobile markets in a different community almost every day. This program helps us distribute fresh produce, meat and veggies to people in need as quickly as possible.
The mobile market held September 19, 2012 was a particularly meaningful event. Save-A-Lot volunteers worked alongside pantry volunteers in the first of an ongoing effort from the company.
Save-A-Lot will not only be giving their employees a chance to volunteer at Foodbank events, but the company is also making a $20,000 donation to hunger relief in the bi-state region, specifically through the mobile market program at the Foodbank.
On behalf of the more than 57,100 people we serve every week, we offer our thanks to Save-A-Lot and all our volunteers.
Bethany Prange is the communications coordinator at the St. Louis Area Foodbank
