Candidates assist with food pantry event

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Published: Monday, 05 September 2016 18:26

The Pulaski County Democrats were joined by two state candidates in volunteering to assist with the visit of the Food Finders mobile pantry that visited Pulaski county Friday (Sept. 2).

State Senae Dist. 5 candidate Jim Harper and State Representative Dist. 16 candidate Rich Ludington were part of the crew that served 85 local families.

Candidates Jim Harper (center left) and Rich Ludington (center right) join Pulaski County Democrat volunteers at recent mobile food pantry.

Harper, a Valparaiso resident, is an Indiana University graduate and received his law degree, with high honors, from Georgetown University. After law school, Harper completed a federal judicial clerkship in Indianapolis. He now practices law in Porter County.

Harper serves on the board of a non-profit law firm that provides free and reduced-cost legal services to veterans, as well as the Hilltop House, a Valparaiso non-profit that provides early-childhood education and other services to Porter County families.

Harper’s mother, Mary Harper, a Republican, is the Porter County Circuit Court Judge. His father, Bob Harper, a Democrat, is a former Porter County Prosecutor and Commissioner. His step-father, Dave Chidester, also a Democrat, is a Porter County Superior Court Judge.

Harper is challenging incumbent Republican Ed Charbonneau for the Dist. 5 state senate seat.

Ludington is a resident of Michigan City and has served on the Rensselaer Central School board. He is an Eagle Scout and member of BoyScouts of America, a member of the Indiana School Board Association, serves as vice president of the Rensselaer City Park Board, and is an advisor to the Saint Joseph College Democrat Student Organization.

He is challenging incumber Republican Doug Gutwein for the Dist. 16 state representative seat.

Food Finders Mobile Pantry

The Mobile Pantry Outreach Program directly serves clients in areas where food is needed in an effort to supplement other hunger relief agencies in that area. The Mobile Pantry truck travels around North Central Indiana providing nutritious perishable and non-perishable food. The truck provides at least 5,000 lbs. of food to each location, which is enough for 140 families to receive 30-40 pounds of food. Each truckload typically includes a variety of products such as frozen meat, canned goods, produce, baked goods, and laundry soap.

The Mobile Pantry Program began in 2010 with just a few distributions. Immediately, the food bank realized the critical need for the program and the communities quickly embraced it. In 2011, Food Finders was selected as one of 10 food banks across the country to receive a new mobile pantry truck through a grant from Kraft Foods and Feeding America. Having a dedicated truck for the program greatly expanded the possibilities for Food Finders. Currently, the truck distributes food almost daily around Food Finders’16-county service area. This program has especially helped areas that have little to no resources. 

The Food Finders program is based in Lafayette.

MOBILE PANTRY QUICK FACTS

By the end of 2014, Food Finders had distributed over 1.6 million pounds of food to nearly 107,000 individuals.

The Mobile Pantry Program helps reduce food spoilage and waste by directly distributing items to the clients. Food Finders can quickly distribute highly perishable items such as produce, baked goods and refrigerated items.

The Mobile Pantry Program helped increase produce distribution by more than 30 percent.