JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida on Wednesday kicked off a series of socially-distanced mobile pantry events at its headquarters on Philips Highway in Jacksonville.
Tammie Bolden and her family were one of the hundreds of families getting essential needs met at Wednesday’s mobile pantry event.
“This is a big help to all the families,” Bolden said. “Lord, I thank you. I mean, they have done a wonderful, wonderful job for everyone, and I would like to say, they out here in the sun every day, dedicating their time, when they could be doing other things.”
Lutheran Social Services partnered with Feeding Northeast Florida and several other organizations to make sure food isn’t the only need met for local families.
“Instead of just handing out food, we’re giving them more help and more hope in the job market and vision screenings that are so vital since a lot of doctor’s offices and things have been closed,” said Bill Brim, executive director of Lutheran Social Services. “So this is a great event to get all these services all packaged at once. "
From a mobile contactless pantry to free vision screenings to career and financial planning, the organizations are ensuring that families have resources for all their needs during the coronavirus pandemic.
“We are going to continue this until there’s no community need left,” Brim said.
The mobile pantry events will happen every first Wednesday and third Friday of the month from 10 a.m. to noon for the foreseeable future.
Wednesday’s kickoff will feed and supply services to more than 400 families. As the series of mobile pantry events continue, the organizations plan to feed and service 200 families per event unless there’s an increased need and that number needs to be bumped up.
For more information about Lutheran Social Services, visit www.lssjax.org.