Community Corner
Coast Guard Families Receive Donated Food
Most in demand was perishable food items - produce, meats, milk, dairy - which was bought early Sunday using donated gift cards.
ALAMEDA, CA — Members of 168 U.S. Coast Guard families who are missing paychecks while furloughed during the partial governmental shutdown turned out Sunday to receive a variety of food and household items, and the East Bay Coast Guard Spouses' Club will do it again Wednesday should the shutdown continue.
"As an organization, we've made it clear that we need to do to help feed our Coast Guard families," said Nicole Lauer, vice president of the East Bay Coast Guard Spouses' Club.
Sunday's event was billed as a "food bank," but household goods were also given to representatives of 168 Alameda-based families of active-duty and civilian Coast Guard employees between 10:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday at the . More than 600 people belong to those families, Lauer said Sunday.
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Those coming for food and goods had to present military IDs and say how many people were in their families, Lauer said. The idea was to receive enough food and other items to last a week. The line started forming before 10 a.m. Sunday, Lauer said, prompting packages to be given out at
10:30 a.m., a half-hour earlier than advertised.
Several Alameda businesses, including The Local coffee shop, Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter, Rock Wall Wine Co. and the Alameda Island Brewing Co., held their own donation drives for nonperishable food, other items and money for gift cards for distribution by the Spouses' Club.
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"The response we've had has been absolutely amazing, even a little overwhelming at times," Lauer said.
Most in demand, she said, was perishable food items - produce, meats, milk, dairy - which was bought early Sunday using donated gift cards.
Another giveaway is planned for Wednesday, in the Coast Guard housing area, as was Sunday's event. Exact times and details are going to be finalized Monday, Lauer said. The donations that made Sunday's event such a success, she said, are still more than welcome.
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— Bay City News; Image via Shutterstock
