YOU INSPIRED A FAMILY TO GIVE BACK
“I appreciate the help we’ve received, because you never know when you’re going to need help. It can turn quick.”
–John
John, a Marine Corp Veteran, his wife Kelly and their 10-year-old daughter, Riley moved to Bismarck about a year ago for John’s new job. But when they arrived and the job fell through, you not only gave them a helping hand, but motivated them to pay it forward.
In early fall 2020, after spending their savings to relocate, John says, “Life turned on a dime.” Both John and Kelly struggled to find work and the couple wasn’t sure how to feed their daughter. How can a child thrive in school or in life without enough to eat?
“Desperate for help we learned about the Adopt-A-Block distribution program (supplied by the Great Plains Food Bank) through Facebook,” John says. For a time, the distribution provided 90% of the food this family had access to.
“We are struggling to keep up, but because of the [Great Plains] Food Bank, now we can put food on the table,” John shared during one of the distribution visits.
Today, both John and Kelly are back on their feet after finding work they thrive in — but they haven’t forgotten your kindness and the help they received because of it.
John volunteered for the Adopt-A-Block Program before finding his current job and continues to offer his mechanical skills, free of charge, to help keep the distribution trucks in good operating order.
“Having been at the bottom and needing help, we can see that sometimes people in need can only make the choices they have available to them,” he says, reflecting on his decision to stand in the food lines.
Thank you for helping families like John and Kelly’s keep healthy food on the table during difficult times of transition — and giving them the inspiration to make our communities an even better place to call home.
Riley
Riley is all smiles holding her favorite fruit.