SIKESTON, Mo . (KAIT) – One in five people in Southeast Missouri struggle to put food on the table. This Saturday, help is coming directly to a Dunklin County church parking lot.
The Southeast Missouri Foodbank is making it easier for people to get food and is bringing it to residents of Dunklin County.
Getting to a food bank isn’t always easy, especially for people without reliable transportation. The Southeast Missouri Foodbank said this why it’s taking the food directly into smaller communities.
Heather Collier, communications manager with the foodbank, said that’s how the idea started.
“But we know that transportation is a barrier and access is a barrier. So by partnering with organizations in these smaller communities, whether it’s a church or another organization, we’re able to take a truckload of food, go serve 200 families, and try and meet them where they are,” Collier said.
One in five people in Southeast Missouri are facing hunger along with one in four children. Nearly half of the people struggling don’t qualify for SNAP benefits.
Collier said this is where the foodbank’s partnerships come in.
“We work with 140 partners across our service area who have brick and mortar locations where they can store food and do distributions either weekly or monthly depending on their schedule,” Collier said.
Not every community has a pantry building, so the foodbank rolls in on wheels.
“Mobile food pantries sort of fill in that gap and get to those communities that don’t have one of those existing pantries. And sometimes they’re monthly, sometimes they are quarterly, or just when a partner in the community wants to help,” Collier said.
This weekend, that help is coming to Dunklin County. A mobile food pantry will be set up at St. John African Methodist Episcopal Church. Organizers will start giving out food Saturday at 11 a.m.
To find a mobile pantry, visit semofoodbank.org.
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