CareSource provided the Foodbank a 7-year lease on the 16-foot box truck, an approximately $140,000 investment, according to a spokesperson for the company.
Lee Truesdale, chief development officer for the Foodbank, said most of the Foodbank trucks are around 26 feet. The smaller, 16-foot trucks are critical for delivering food to certain areas in need, she noted.
“These allow us to get into neighborhoods where we’re going to partner agencies, like smaller churches or buildings, in places with streets that are challenging to safely navigate with the large trucks,” Truesdale said, adding that the smaller trucks can also be used when picking up products from local retail store docks.
Cars lined up across the parking lot Thursday in front of the former Sears building, with hundreds of families there to pick up boxes filled with chicken, sweet potatoes, tomatoes, fruit and other staples for a homecooked meal.
A mass food distribution was last held at the location in June, at which time 1,400 households participated, Truesdale said, adding that Thursday’s turnout was expected to be similar.
In a time of low unemployment, Foodbank officials recently said the number of individuals who report food insecurity in the community is down. But Truesdale said the people the agency is serving are getting help more often — 5.6 times a year compared to 1.3 times a year in early 2019, before COVID and the massive tornado outbreak.
People who seek the foodbank’s services typically cite inflation and a high cost of living as the reasons they need assistance. Truesdale said a lack of a sustainable wage or unemployment are also common factors.
To learn more about the Foodbank, call 937-461-0265 or visit www.thefoodbankdayton.org.
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