St. Petersburg area elected officials to distribute food to those in need

Volunteers load groceries into cars during a food distribution event at St. Monica's Catholic Church in Miami Gardens. Image via AP.

St. Petersburg leaders will be distributing free food via a drive-thru on Thursday at John Hopkins Middle School. 

Florida Rep. Wengay Newton, state Sen. Darryl Rouson, Pinellas County School Board member Bill Dudley and St. Petersburg City Council member Gina Driscoll partnered with Farm Share to host the event. 

Farm Share is a non-profit that works to distribute free food to Floridians in need, especially fresh produce. Last year, the organization distributed 88 million pounds of food to more than 17.5 million households across Florida, and more than 20 million pounds were fruits and vegetables. 

This event comes amid massive job losses from the coronavirus pandemic. In June, Florida had an unemployment rate of 10.4%, an improvement from May’s 13.7% rate, but significant compared to June 2019, when the Florida unemployment rate was 3.2%.

In addition to job loss, federal unemployment relief will end July 31, leaving many families without a weekly $600 check. 

With these challenges, food distribution services have been vital for Floridians. 

The event is still looking for volunteers, who will need to arrive at 8:30 a.m. The drive thru distribution will start at 10 a.m. and last till 1 p.m., or until the food runs out.