JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The food truck community at the Trout River Food Park on Jacksonville’s northside banded together to give out free hot meals on Thursday.
Although the government has reopened, for many Florida families, it remains unclear when their SNAP benefits will be deposited into their accounts.
Some states have already started issuing SNAP benefits. Georgia released partial funds, but Florida, however, had yet to release any benefits.
The food giveaway included food trucks such as Chef Love Sol Cuisine , To Be Frank Jax and American Smokehouse BBQ.
“We’re in the community to be a part of the community and to help the community. Right now, due to the government shutdown, there’s a lot that’s going on. And we can’t be here serving people every day and not give back,” Chef Love said.
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Residents were grateful for the outpour of support at a time when putting food on the table could be a challenge.
“I appreciate it,” Rosha said. “I think it’s great that they’re giving back to the community. A lot of people don’t think about the community, especially this side of town, so for them to come over here and give back to us, it’s wonderful. It’s amazing.”
Feeding Northeast Florida also worked with the Jacksonville City Council to ensure families didn’t go hungry.
“We were so thrilled when we heard that the city council unanimously gave that money. We have been working so hard to try and get food out into the community, and this money is going to just mean that we can get more food out,” Sarah Hall, Strategic Initiative Vice President, said.
The funding will be to purchase food that could help about 25,000 people in the area.