EAST HARTFORD, Conn. — For more than a year, the team at Foodshare has been helping to feed food-insecure families at Rentschler Field in East Hartford.
After 13 months, the field is getting ready to host other events, and on Thursday Foodshare welcomed people in East Hartford one last time.
“Me personally, it has helped me and my family, trust me,” said Joseph Osei-Boateng of East Hartford, when FOX61 spoke with him in line Thursday.
FOX61 met Richard Maska in July when he turned out to get food for his four grandkids.
“It just makes you feel good, it’s just who I am, I have always been that way," he said. "They need the help, if I got it I give it to them, if I don’t I’ll come over here and help them."
Since the pandemic started, Foodshare has filled more than 275,000 trunks.
“We could not do this without our volunteer force, we have a group of about 30 volunteers every single day, they become like a family,” said Foodshare President, Jason Jakubowski.
Among the army of volunteers who helped with more than nine million pounds of food were the SCSU and UCONN basketball teams who volunteered in October.
“We just really want them to know that we are here with them,” said UCONN basketball player, Isaiah Whaley.
“If you are blessed, you want to be able to bless other people,” said SCSU’s Ulyen Coleman.
Bertucci’s and the Central Connecticut Cultural Committee (5Cs) also stepped up big by feeding volunteers and donating money.
“We are so proud of them and we were only so proud to be part of their organization by donating back to them to help them help everybody,” said 5C’s Eileen Moore when FOX61 spoke with her in March.
This spring FOX61 matched 5C’s with a $5,000 check to help provide more than 7-million meals.
As distribution went into its last day at Rentschler Field many who’ve been coming throughout the pandemic had a heartfelt message for the volunteers who made it happen.
“They do a great job, they really, really do and I think everyone here really, really appreciates it,” said John Bunk of East Hartford.
Osei-Boateng agreed: “My message to them is that God should richly bless them, they have done a very, very good job.”
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