ECHHO

In our community there are some who must supplement their diet
with food from the Port Townsend Food Bank but have no transportation or are not physically able to avail themselves of this vital resource. Rich Heitmann of ECHHO and Food Bank manager Shirley Moss have come up with a plan that will help get food to these people. Starting in May, ECHHO volunteers are offered the opportunity to deliver pre-boxed food to housebound food bank clients. The way it works is very simple. If the food bank gets a request from someone who needs help, Shirley contacts Rich and lets him know of the need. Rich, acting as liaison between the food bank and ECHHO, finds an available volunteer. The volunteer would go to the food bank to pick up the one or two manageable boxes of food that have already been packed and are ready to be delivered. The volunteer can pick up the food at their convenience on the next Wednesday morning that the food bank is open. For the volunteer, the pick up process takes only minutes – no standing in lines. We already have volunteers who have stepped forward to offer their helping hands. Bob is very excited about being able to do this and volunteered to do the first “test drive”. He was so pleased with the experience of bringing food to a frail elderly lady that he wants to continue doing this every Wednesday if he is available. This is another way that ECHHO can reach out to those in need while also helping the Port Townsend Food Bank fulfill its mission. With a little brainstorming and creative thinking, we’ve come up with a simple solution to a serious need. By putting our heads and hearts together we can all make a difference!