(KTAR News Photo / Ali Vetnar) PHOENIX – Since the pandemic began, St. Mary’s Food Bank has seen unprecedented demand for food to feed families across Arizona. In its 50-year history, the food bank now reports a record amount of food distributed. “We never handed out 10 million pounds of food a month until COVID hit,” St. Mary’s Food Bank director of public affairs Jerry Brown told KTAR News 92.3 FM on Tuesday. The Phoenix location is expected to reach up to 1,000 families per day, with the Surprise location estimated at 250-300 families. St. Mary’s works to provide food for a week for each family. The Surprise grocery bank location is off US 60 on Bell Road and often serves an older population group who are retired and living on Social Security. But with the hardships of economic decline and the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus, the dynamics of many households have changed. A woman named Yvonne was standing in the cold, damp weather on Tuesday morning, waiting for food. “I have grandchildren and children who live with me and he lost his job, I don’t make enough money – I’m retired and work part time,” she said. A similar story was told by Judy Sloan. “I have three children at home with my daughter, husband, and myself,” Sloan said. “Sometimes we can’t have money for groceries because I don’t get enough for Social Security, but St. Mary’s helps me.” St. Mary’s is committed to ending hunger for starving families in Phoenix and nine Feed counties of Arizona. With additional dollars from the state, St. Mary’s Food Bank is now able to deliver groceries using refrigerated trucks. Before the new trucks were available, volunteers drove the food in their own cars. Due to the vulnerable population and the threats seniors face from COVID-19, St. Mary’s has worked hard to improve its delivery capability. “Before COVID, we had about 1,100 seniors who were home-bound and who we were delivering to because we were aware of their situation, that number has now grown to about 4,000,” Brown said. Follow @Ali_Vetnar we want to hear from you. Do you have a story idea or a tip? Forward it to the KTAR news team here.
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