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East King County food banks receive 40,000-pound food donation from LDS Church in Utah

BELLEVUE, Wash. — Forty-thousand pounds of donated food and supplies arrived in Bellevue on Wednesday, courtesy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Salt Lake City.

“The proposal was written by Renewal (Food Bank). It was my contact with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They have done these kinds of donations throughout the world and United States,” Kathy Hoggan, board chair of Renewal Food Bank in Bellevue, said. “This was a chance for us to reach out to a lot of small food banks and all of them have empty shelves right now.”

The supplies will be split between 13 food banks in east King County, including Fall City Community Food Pantry.

Diane Davis, a volunteer with Fall City Food Community Pantry, said the food bank serves 40 families and has been running out of food.

“It’s looking very empty these days, so getting this opportunity was huge for us,” Davis said. “This is the worst I’ve seen it in the last three years, in terms of the amount of supply we have available to give to our families.”

Fall City Community Food Pantry, which also works with food banks in Preston and Carnation, said inflation is affecting donors and those in need.

“Everything else is going up, in terms of cost. Families are looking to supplement their current food budget. On the other hand, our donors and our families that generally give are also looking at their budgets - if they can still afford to help support their families and neighbors,” Davis said.