Every week the HopeLink Mobile Market brings fresh fruits and vegetables along with eggs, meat and fish and canned goods to a growing number of Kenmore residents who need help with stretching their food budgets to provide for their families.
HopeLink purchased the Mobile Market van with money from grants received during the Covid pandemic. The 24 foot van is managed by HopeLink employee Matt Bunn, who purchases all the groceries from local food distributors, and twice a week parks the food truck from 1pm to 2pm at the Kenmore Senior Center, 6910 NE 170th St., on the first and third Wednesday of each month, and on the second and fourth Thursday the market is parked from 1pm to 3pm at the Kenmore Community Church.
Shoppers can access fresh, locally grown produce including seasonal fruits and vegetables along with shelf-stable foods like peanut butter, pastas, soups, beans, and rice. When available, there are also fresh dairy products and frozen beef, chicken and fish. All items are free to those who are eligible. People can sign up with an online form available in a dozen languages.
In addition to Kenmore, the Mobile Market delivers food to Bothell, Redmond, Woodinville, Mercer Island and Bellevue. Bunn says he is seeing steep growth in the numbers of people seeking help. In February they provided food to more than 500 families, in March they reached 600 and in April the total nearly topped 800 families. In Kenmore they serve 70 to 90 families each week.
Most of the people they help are immigrants for whom English is a second language, but the primary languages are from all over, Eastern Europe, Russia, the Middle East, Africa, South America, and Asia.
People who would like to help out can sign up on the HopeLink volunteer hub, or donate money or food at any of HopeLink's five stationary Markets.
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