Alameda food bank volunteer helps pass on tradition to serve community
OAKLAND – On any given day, one will find lots of volunteers working hard to pack food and fresh vegetables, such as potatoes, apples and onions, at the Alameda County Community Food Bank.
Kate Rome is one of those volunteers making time to help is important to her and to her family.
"I was a regular volunteer before the pandemic and I am coming back, trying to do that more regularly," Rome told KPIX 5. "I like to get us out volunteering at least once during the holiday season"
Their love of serving the community helped grow a legacy project at her daughter's Alameda school
"They came with their 5th grade class, and you can also bring five kids per one adult, so we had come that way on our own just as a family," Rome said.
"A group of parents proposed that the 5th grade legacy project be a partnership with Alameda county community food bank for the 5th graders to learn about food insecurity and the food bank," Rome said.
Those 5th graders worked shifts.
"Seventy-five kids and about 25 adults over two days and we bagged about 30,000 pounds of food. And then we continued it for the next three years, our last one was January 2020, so we got one in right before the lockdown," Rome recalled.
When the pandemic hit, that didn't stop them from wanting to help
"We couldn't come back to the food bank because of restrictions, here and at school. So we ended up doing a food insecurity awareness campaign and a virtual drive through the food bank. We aimed for raising 2,022, for the class of 2022, and we ended up raising close to $7,000 for the food bank, so the kids were really proud of that," Rome said.
The 5th grade legacy project at Edison Elementary still partners up with the food bank. Meanwhile, Rome and her family continue to serve their community.
"It's an ongoing tradition, which is very exciting, and I love that school supports it," she said.