United Center turns into food hub to help support families during COVID-19 outbreak
United Center turns into food hub to help support families during COVID-19 outbreak
The United Center is home to the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, and now it’s home to more than 460,000 pounds of food being stored by the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
CHICAGO - The United Center is home to the Chicago Bulls and Blackhawks, and now it’s home to more than 460,000 pounds of food being stored by the Greater Chicago Food Depository. That’s equivalent to about 16-truckloads worth of food that will be boxed up and given to families that could use some assistance right now during the coronavirus pandemic.
“It’s such a tough situation for so many people, but this is a great example of how people and organizations are stepping up and working together and helping people out,” said Greg Trotter of the Greater Chicago Food Depository.
Non-perishable items like canned fruits and vegetables, rice, beans, pasta, tuna and cereal are now being stored inside the United Center, with volunteers sorting them into boxes –- each one containing about 20 to 30 pounds of food that will then be distributed to families through the depository’s partner network in Chicago and across Cook County.
“This United Center donation of space is amazing because what it does is it allows us to move a considerable amount of food to the United Center and it clears out room in our warehouse where we can bring more volunteers in to pack food for families in need,” Trotter said.
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Trotter says because of social distancing, the food bank has had to have smaller groups of volunteers assembling them at their warehouse.
“We’re just sort of running out of room. We’re kind of bursting at the seams right now,” he said.
But now, with the addition of the United Center space, they will be able to accommodate more than double the amount of volunteers per day, which means less families could go hungry.
“It’s also just like an empowering, inspiring thing to be a part of,” Trotter said.
Trotter says volunteers have been packing thousands of these boxes a week and are taking extra precautions by wearing gloves and social distancing, but they need more help.
To find out how you can volunteer or get a family food box for you or someone you know, go to ChicagosFoodBank.org.