LA Regional Food Bank feeds thousands each month thanks to dedicated volunteers
LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- ABC7's Feed SoCal food drive is underway. Each year, generous donations go toward helping families facing hunger or food insecurity across Southern California.
The campaign supports several local food banks, including the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank.
"It's vitally important that people support the Feed SoCal campaign and help us and other Southern California food banks distribute more food to the community," said Roger Castle, the L.A. Regional Food Bank's chief development officer.
The L.A. Regional Food Bank relies on support from companies like Marriott and U.S. Bank, especially with summer underway.
"With school being out, there are a lot of families out there that are still going to have to make a decision: am I going to pay rent or am I going to go out and buy some food?" Silvano Merlo of Marriott said.
It's at the food bank where volunteers stuff boxes with ramen and canned goods before they're shipped off.
"The food bank serves over 900,000 individuals on a monthly basis," Joanna Ho of U.S. Bank said. "To be able to have an impact on those individuals, where we're physically putting these pieces of items into these boxes knowing that they're going to be fed, it's just an amazing feeling."
Some of the food gets loaded into trucks and volunteers, like those from Ocean Gate Ministries, hand it out themselves.
"We can deliver, but they also come to us," Ruben Sanders of Ocean Gate Ministries said. "There are certain families that come for other families.
"They give us fresh vegetables, fresh bread. Everything they have is really fresh quality stuff, and we're able to pass that along very quickly."
The next Feed SoCal event is on Friday, June 14, from 6 a.m. until 12 p.m. at Stater Bros. Market on Whittier Boulevard in Whittier. You can stop by and drop off non-perishable foods that will help feed families in need all over Southern California.
You can also help by making a donation at abc7.com/feedsocal.
