Love INC provides 600 food baskets

Thinking about the living conditions of the less fortunate was motivation for Mary Lou Castillo, as she worked outside Saturday, collecting identification tickets from the recipients of Love INC’s holiday food basket distribution.

As she helped direct drive-through traffic at the Comision Honorifica Mexicana-Americana building on Date and Plano Street, she was reminded of the field workers who endure the elements while they work, and come to organizations like Love INC (Love In the Name of Christ) to receive food for their families.

“We’ve gone through the heat, we’ve gone through the cold, but we haven’t gone through the rain, and I’ve been doing this a long time. I try to put myself in the shoes of some of the farm workers who are coming here today. I thought, if they can do this out in the fields for a living, I can do this as a volunteer for a few hours,” Castillo said.

It was the first time that it rained on the day of the food distribution in the last 13 years that Love INC has used the building, according to Director Elva Beltran. But despite the rain, and despite the fact that donations were down this year, about 600 families received at least a box of food. Families of more than five received one additional small box of community donated food, and families of more than ten received two extra boxes.

Food Link, which is the major supplier for most food banks throughout Tulare County, provided less produce to Love INC this year than it has in previous years.

“They usually give a lot of fruits and vegetables. This year, there’s no apples, no pears, celery, onions. We did get potatoes,” said Beltran. “We know they’re tight on money too, and we appreciate them. So even though our donations have been down, we do what we can to continue the good work, and it’s times like this that we all come together, different walks of life — men, women, and children — and we get it done.”

“Kudos to the volunteers,” she added, as she took a short break during the four-hour event.

John Cortez, a Veteran from the Marines, had the distribution process organized, from the food, to the people assembling boxes and sliding them down a conveyor to be handed to the recipients. The volunteers included people from the St. Anne’s food kitchen, Orange Belt Board of Realtors, the Knights of Columbus at St. Anne’s, Rollin’ Relics, Porterville Ghost Society, the Sin Cal roller derby Vixens, members of the React volunteer group, and many others. That didn’t include those who donated the items to be distributed.

Members from the Orange Belt Board of Realtors bought items in bulk for a discount, at the Vallarta Supermarket, to help make up for the food shortage. They also supplied the rice and beans. Schools, churches and individuals also helped out, whether by writing checks, or donating pickup trucks, and car loads full of canned food. Food Link supplied items like Mushroom Soup, frozen strawberries, boxes of milk, cranberry sauce, and apple juice.

As a former recipient of Love INC’s services, Irene Johnsen, who is now also a volunteer, said the food distribution, “helps a lot.

“It does, especially in this kind of whether, for the farm laborers. They can’t work, so they don’t have money to get food. If it weren’t for [the food distribution]. A lot of people would not be having a Christmas dinner, including me,” she said.

Johnsen, at one point, was going to have her electricity canceled if she wouldn’t have received help form the organization. Saturday, she put on the hat of a volunteer, in addition to being a recipient, and delivered food boxes to a couple of the clients who did not have a vehicle, and could not drive to the event.

“I think it’s awesome that they have this opportunity for people that work, but it’s hard to manage, you know, when you’re single and you have a family. It gives you some kind of hope that there are people who care for those who don’t have,” said Isabel Hernandez, as she drove up to receive a food box for her family.

Liza Chapa takes advantage of the food distribution as an opportunity to teach her children about self sacrifice.

“I wanted to bring my boys, because I wanted to show them there’s other things to do besides stay home and play video games. My oldest [Alex, 18], is sick today, but he was disappointed. He wanted to come,” she said.

“I think more people should get involved. Everybody should experience stuff like this. It’s an eye opener,” said Castillo, as she talked with St. Anne’s food bank Director, Leonor Alvarado, about the severity of the living conditions of some of the families Love Inc. serves. “Some people, I’ve been to their house, where they don’t have food. They don’t have basic things like shampoo. We’re not going to cure it all, but I’m just happy that we do help here.”