City leaders are asking Tulsans to help support the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma during the sixth-annual Stock the Station food drive.
People can drop off nonperishable food at any Tulsa city-county library, fire station, police station or city hall through Dec. 31. The food drive, which benefits the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma, began under former Mayor Dewey Bartlett and is continuing under Mayor G.T. Bynum.
"One of the things that sets Tulsa aside as a community from, really, other parts of the country and the world is that this is a city where neighbors pull together to help one another when they have a need," Bynum said.
The food bank needs items like canned goods, baby cereal and formula, peanut butter, dried beans, and juice. Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma Executive Director Eileen Bradshaw said the food drive can be a good teaching moment for families.
"This is a great way to get your kids in and meet the police officers, meet the firefighters that protect us all every day," Bradshaw said. "Let them see that some people don't have the advantages that they do."
One in four Oklahoma kids go to bed hungry on any given night, and City Councilor Karen Gilbert said that hurts them at school.
"We're going to be feeding the families, making sure that children come to school fed and seeing a dramatic change in their behavior in the classroom and also in their class work," Gilbert said.
The food bank is also accepting monetary donations, which can be mailed, made online or sent by texting “hunger” to 80077. George Kaiser Family Foundation will match up to $150,000.
