Food Bank for Monterey County
353 W. Rossi St., Salinas 758-1523, foodbankformontereycounty.org
The demand for food from the Food Bank for Monterey County quadrupled overnight when the pandemic struck. Suddenly people who never used the food bank before were in need of food after losing their jobs and the usual places people received free food and meals – especially schools – were shut down. The Food Bank acted quickly to develop new distribution strategies and safety protocols. The organization also accepted the help from a unit of the California Army National Guard to distribute 45.1 million pounds of food. Fifty new distribution sites were created, mostly drive – thrus. It’s currently serving 60,000 Monterey County families every month, doing critical work to keep people healthy and fed.