St. Mary’s Food Bank sends water, snacks to support LA wildfire response
Jan 15, 2025, 7:51 AM | Updated: 1:56 pm
PHOENIX – St. Mary’s Food Bank is pitching in with water and snacks for Los Angeles wildfire evacuees and firefighters battling the destructive blazes.
Arizona’s largest food bank responded to a request for the support from its Feeding America partners in the Los Angeles area by shipping out provisions on Tuesday night.
Firefighters are still working to contain the Eaton and Palisades fires, which have destroyed thousands of homes since igniting on Jan. 7. As of Wednesday morning, nearly 90,000 Los Angeles County residents remained under evacuation orders.
As the wildfires continue to pose a threat, contaminated drinking water is becoming an issue for some of the impacted communities.
St. Mary’s was able to send 35,000 bottles of water with help from local water partner Niagara. In addition, the Arizona charity organization sent a semi-truck filled with ready-to-eat snacks from partner Allen Distribution to southern California.
Flyers that say “We ♡ LA” with the St. Mary’s logo were affixed to the supply pallets.
St. Mary’s Food Bank seeks donations to replenish supplies
“We are happy to do what we can to help our neighbors in L.A. and were eager to help,” St. Mary’s Food Bank spokesman Jerry Brown said in a press release.
However, St. Mary’s is now looking to replenish its water supplies. Anybody who would like to help can drop off bottles at the food bank’s collection centers in Phoenix (3131 W. Thomas Road) and Surprise (13050 W. Elm St.).
St. Mary’s also accepts monetary contributions online. The charity can buy hundreds of bottles of water with a donation of $25.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.