Clark County Food Bank working hard to feed thousands of students this summer

CLARK COUNTY, Wash. (KPTV) - The FOX 12 Hunger Free Project is dedicated to helping feed the hungry in our area, and now there’s a new reasons to get involved. School is about to end for thousands of students for the summer, but many of those students rely on schools for the meals they need to stay healthy.

At the Clark County Food Bank, you’ll find a lot more than food. With the boxes of fresh produce and hard working volunteers, you’ll find hope. Hope for thousands of hungry people all over southwest Washington.

“Receiving help can be hard for anybody and we want to encourage and let everyone know that if this takes any weight off your shoulders this is the place for you to come,” said Kyle Hamilton, Program Coordinator at Clark County Food Bank.

Hamilton told FOX 12 that they are ready to serve the families who now can’t rely on school meals every day, so in the coming weeks they’ll be bringing the food out to the community.

“So we just transitioned out of our school pantries and moving onto something called Food Bank Fresh. It’s basically the same distribution except it’s open to the entire public,” Hamilton said. “So the same students, the same families can come to these mobile distributions all over Clark County.”

The warehouse is busy because the need is great.

“There is so much happening, especially with rising food and transportation costs. Families who are at the lower end of having income are having to make choices on what they’re spending that money on,” Alison Lauderdale, Education manager at Clark County Food Bank, said.

Lauderdale told FOX 12 they work with 43 different partners to hand out food. No one is turned away.

“Most programs that offer free food, you just have to show up to get to access the food,” she said.

But this is not an endless supply. Food banks rely on everyone to keep the good work going.

“The problem of hunger or not having enough to eat, doesn’t exist in isolation, and the solution is a community wide effort,” said Lauderdale. “And then it takes the community to volunteer and get involved and support our neighbors across our community.”

There are always two constants; families that need food and volunteers who need help.

To donate to the Hunger Free Project, scan the QR code in the photo below. It will take you to the site where you can donate directly. Every dollar you donate will stay in our community and help out the families who are really struggling right now.

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