Volunteer drivers are the lifeblood of local food banks
FOSTER CITY -- When Seth Adkins loads food into his car, it brings him back to his childhood in the Midwest. Back then, he could only hope that his single mom could afford a full cart of groceries.
"It was rough. It was waiting at the door, waiting for my mom to come home, hoping that she had food," Adkins said.
There was no food bank. and no guarantee where he and his sister would get their next meal.
"I can remember one time, we had nothing in our cupboard," Adkins said. "We came home from church and our cupboards were full. The refrigerator was full and the church had gathered money and taken care of us, and it really always stuck with me. And I always said if I got a chance and was in a comfortable spot of my own, I'm going to give back."
He got his chance in May 2021.
The Foster City stay-at-home dad started making food deliveries five days a week, every week, from Second Harvest of Silicon Valley.
He drives emergency donations from the San Carlos warehouse in his own car to the elderly and others not able to leave their homes.
"If I can make someone's life the littlest bit better, I will do it," he said while driving to his first delivery of the day.
Shobana Gubbi, chief philanthropy officer, says the food bank serves 450,000 people a month from Daly City to Gilroy.
That's an 80 percent increase since before COVID. So volunteers like Adkins are critical.
"One in five people in our community are really struggling to make ends meet, and it takes all of us to lift each other up during hard times," Gubbi said.
Adkins takes that mission seriously. The father of two brings more than food. He brings connection.
He knows whoever's on the other side of the door is probably struggling. So whether they open the door or not he's ready to brighten their day.
"Sometimes I might be the only person they see that day," he said. "And you get the feeling that's how it is sometimes. And I will stay and chat and try to shoot a little joy into their life if I can."
Truth is, he leaves feeling pretty good, too.
"I was having some anxiety issues a couple of years ago, and I said, 'What would make me feel better?' And it was being more immersed in my community, and I cannot even tell you how quickly I realized this was my calling," he explained.
In fact, when he took his new job as kindergarten PE teacher, he made sure he'd still be available for home deliveries every weekday.
"The joy for me in doing this is that I'm taking care of a kid like me," he said. "There's somebody in that house that felt like me as a kid and maybe their day is a little bit better because I brought food that day."
And on this day, the smiles from the little girl and her family who received the groceries made it all worth it.
"Bye, bye, look at you, that's a pretty dress," he smiled, waving to her as she stood on the porch.
And that's the food that drives him to keep on giving.
"This is the most rewarding thing I've ever done," he said.
Second Harvest of Silicon Valley needs more volunteers to step up. If you can help, go to shfb.org.
