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Waste Not Want Not back on the road with new truck

Community comes to the rescue to organization dedicated to fighting hunger, poverty

By Wesley LeBlanc wesley@opcfla.com
Posted 8/26/20

ORANGE PARK – Local nonprofit Waste Not Want Not was eager to show off its new $40,000 truck purchased with help from the community.

Waste Not Want Not’s truck broke down for good back in …

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Waste Not Want Not back on the road with new truck

Community comes to the rescue to organization dedicated to fighting hunger, poverty


Posted

ORANGE PARK – Local nonprofit Waste Not Want Not was eager to show off its new $40,000 truck purchased with help from the community.

Waste Not Want Not’s truck broke down for good back in April and the organization lost its main source of gathering and delivering food for months. The truck was responsible for transporting one million pounds of food each year. After weeks of fundraising within the Clay County community, the 501(c)(3) charity organization revealed its new truck to a crowd of dozens Tuesday, Aug. 25.

“We are a group of people that believes it’s wrong for anyone to go hungry while food goes to waste,” Executive Director Sandra Staudt-Killea said. “This new truck will help us accomplish that mission.”

Waste Not Want Not prevents discarding food and other items that can be used to fight hunger and poverty, according to the group’s mission. They do it by rescuing food every day from several sources and distributing it to local charitable organizations.

Staudt-Killea told a small crowd of the importance of the truck. She said half of all Waste Not Want Not food is transported and delivered by the truck. When the old truck broke down, the community stepped in.

Staudt-Killea said after learning the charity would need a new truck, it began to ask for donations on Facebook and throughout the community. The Orange Park Sunrise Rotary club stepped in to cover the cost of renting a new truck for three months.

Nimnicht Chevrolet caught wind of Waste Not Want Not’s predicament and donated a very large sum, Staudt-Killea said. They were also able to put the new truck on hold for six weeks to give the charity enough time to raise the $40,000 necessary to purchase it.

“Once we heard the story, we knew we had to get involved,” Mike Watson of Nimnicht, who sold Waste Not the truck, said. “We’re so thankful for what they do and it’s amazing how much good a single truck can do. It was the least we could do to help Waste Not in their mission.”

Staudt-Killea said after the unveiling that she was “absolutely humbled” by the support and she’s still blown away by the community’s ability to show up in times like this. She was especially surprised by all of the donations in light of the ongoing pandemic that has made financials stressful for many in Clay County.

Many of the donations that paid for the truck came from the 250 Waste Not volunteers, but Staudt-Killea said others donated as well.

“It meant so much to see these people donating to us,” Staudt-Killea said. “They had never volunteered for us or anything, but they still donated and I think that sings to how important the message of Waste Not is.

“Nobody should go hungry. If we can make a difference in people’s lives, then we have succeeded, and even one person can make a difference. That’s what’s important to remember when facing such a task as feeding the hungry: you can make a difference.”