'It's like Christmas': Birchwood Senior Mobile pantry brings food to families in need. WTVC:IMAGE)
The second Friday of every month you'll find volunteers at the Birchwood Community Center donating their time to make a difference in the community.
The Chattanooga Area Food Bank's Senior Moblie Pantry helps serve 720 households each month in Bradley, Hamilton , McMinn, Meigs and Van Buren Counties.
The community center transforms into a grocery store proving 50 pounds of food like fresh fruit and vegetables to a family in need.
If you ask Linda Wright what Birchwood means to her you'll get this answer.
"The people. The people," Wright explained
People help bring the Senior Mobile Pantry to life for families like Willie Greene's.
"We drive about 45 minutes in the second Friday of every month to help the food bank," Volunteer, Rebecca Lanphear.
Once a month boxes get unloaded and unpacked from the Chattanooga Area Food Bank truck.
"They are sitting and watching and going like what else is coming off the truck," Wright added.
Volunteers fill each table with fresh fruits, veggies and milk so each family can take home a box filled with food.
"It means a lot to me it helps out for the month because we are on a fixed income," Greene said.
Sophie Moore with the Chattanooga Area Food Bank says this program helps those who live in rural areas who can't drive to Chattanooga.
"A lot of these folks are income limited so they have a lot of priorities they have to keep align just to get through every day," Moore said.
Besides leaving with a full trunk there's a feeling of gratitude.
"It's a wonderful thing, it's like having Christmas all over again," Greene explained.
For the volunteers who make this happen every month.
"If it is just one person that day, you've made a difference," Wright said.
If you want to help, you can donate a dollar to the Chattanooga Area Food Bank it can help provide 4 meals.
