How Workforce Training Changed Tiquana’s Life

Tiquana and her daughter moved to the Orlando area from South Carolina last year and were just settling into the community. Her family lived in a hotel while Tiquana was saving money from her job at a local big-box store to move them into an apartment. 

Her dream was to work in the culinary field, but cost and transportation were barriers to the educational programs she had researched. She was struggling to pay bills because her hours at work had been cut dramatically.

Volunteers Help Rescue Food to Fight Hunger for Local Families 

To keep food flowing across its network of feeding partners, Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida runs the Retail Rescue program, which collects millions of pounds of unsold food from stores like Walmart and Sam’s Club. The food reaches people in two ways. In one, a Second Harvest truck brings the food to the food bank, where volunteers sort it. Then, a feeding partner picks it up and takes it to their food pantry or community meal program. 

Volunteering is the Universal Love Language

Volunteers for the Bites, Camera, Action program, which is funded by the Universal Orlando Foundation, come to the food bank monthly to pack food boxes for local families, seniors and veterans. Through this program, they also help out at school resource fairs by cooking, providing dinner for families, and distributing bags of fresh produce. 

Mobile Food Distributions Bring Relief to Neighbors Facing Hunger

Mobile food distributions help get large amounts of food to the community quickly. In just a few hours, volunteers hand out tens of thousands of pounds of nutritious food to neighbors.

Thanks to donations from the community and grocery stores like Walmart and Sam’s Club, the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida can give out much more fresh food to neighbors in need than they could without this support.