Fort Myers community relies on Harry Chapin for weekly food delivers

The mission to feed families in Southwest Florida starts bright and early at the Harry Chapin Food Bank warehouse in Fort Myers.

Every morning, the team is busy loading food into their more than 20 delivery trucks to distribute to 175 partner agencies throughout the community.

According to the Harry Chapin Food bank, more than 60% of Southwest Florida is considered a food desert, meaning many people do not have convenient access to a grocery store. The Harry Chapin Food Bank steps in to bring food to the communities that need it most.

"It's all about logistics," said Richard Leber. "If you're hungry in Lehigh Acres today, it doesn't do you any good if I can feed you in Cape Coral next Tuesday."

The first stop of the day was at St. Vincent de Paul in Fort Myers. The church holds a food pantry every Friday, feeding 250 people each week.

"Harry Chapin makes it available for me to pick up food at the stores," said Chuck Billups, Vice President of St. Vincent de Paul. "If I didn't have that I couldn't feed these people."

Harry Chapin helps them fill paper bags with essentials like spaghetti, cereal, green beans, and tuna.

The church noted that many people who come to their pantries walk, as they do not have a car to drive to the grocery store. St. Vincent de Paul holds its food pantries every Friday at 8:30 a.m. in Fort Myers.

Those Harry Chapin trucks keep the deliveries going all morning long. For the entire month of February, WINK News is on a March to a Million Meals to help more families in our community. If you want to join us and help support our community, head over to WINKFeedsFamilies.com.