On Sept. 21, Folsom’s largest day of volunteerism returns, bringing together residents of all ages to complete projects throughout the city aimed at making a lasting, positive impact. Organized by the City of Folsom, local businesses, and community organizations, Community Service Day is a significant event, with one of its biggest components being the citywide food drive.
This year, participation in that large scale food drive by the community is more crucial than ever.
The Twin Lakes Food Bank, a primary recipient of the food drive’s donations, is facing a 20% increase in families needing food assistance, while simultaneously experiencing a decline in food donations due to tough economic conditions. As a result, the food bank’s shelves are nearly bare.
“I have been here nearly seven years, and I have never seen the food bank’s shelves this empty,” said Lisa Tuter, executive director of Twin Lakes Food Bank.
In preparation for the food drive, volunteers have spent the past few weeks delivering empty grocery bags to local doorsteps. Attached to the bags are instructions prepared by hundreds of volunteers at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A total of 31,000 bags have been distributed throughout the city.
On Community Service Day, a convoy of volunteers will pick up the filled bags from doorsteps and transport them to the Twin Lakes Food Bank, where another group of volunteers will sort the food for proper storage.
Last year, community members donated approximately 28- tons of non-perishable food to benefit the food bank. Despite the large quantity, the donations were distributed almost as quickly as they arrived, due to the growing demand for food assistance.
According to Tuter, the food bank’s most-needed items include cereal, canned tuna, canned chicken, canned ravioli, pasta and pasta sauce, canned fruits and vegetables, pasta or Rice-A-Roni, and instant mashed potatoes.
“If every Folsom household donates just one bag of groceries, it can feed Folsom’s hungry for one year,” said Tuter.
The issue of empty shelves is not specific to Twin Lakes Food Bank. Food Banks and food pantry’s across the Sacramento region as well as the nation have been suffering from increased demand and decreased supplies over the last year. Much of the challenge is credited to the economy where more families need the help while so many are unable to help due to tight finances amidst inflation.
Although many volunteers are already working on the food drive, registration for Community Service Day is still open, with several other areas of need. To learn more or register to volunteer, visit www.folsomcommunityservice.org.
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