Help Prevent Hunger | Community

The 28th annual SaddleBrooke Community Outreach (SBCO) Food Drive on March 14th will gather donations of food and money to support the Tri-Community Food Bank (TCFB) based in Mammoth. TCFB serves needy families living in Mammoth, San Manuel, Oracle and the Dudleyville/Aravaipa area. Last year, despite a major rainstorm, SaddleBrooke and SaddleBrooke Ranch residents donated 9,500 pounds of food and $142,080 to the Food Drive. TCFB meets a real need in the Tri-Community area, where 20 percent of households live below the poverty level and 10 percent are below 50 percent of the poverty level. Every increase in the cost of gasoline, food and utilities has a significant impact on families already struggling to make ends meet.

SBCO will be collecting monetary contributions online or with checks from Monday, March 2 to Saturday, March 14. Online donations can be made at the SBCO website atcommunity-outreach.org.

Checks should be made payable to SaddleBrooke Community Outreach with your unit number and either SaddleBrooke or SaddleBrooke Ranch on the memo line. Checks can be delivered to Food Drive Unit Captains or mailed/hand delivered to the SBCO office at 63675 E. SaddleBrooke Boulevard, Suite L., Tucson, AZ 85739 (in the SaddleBrooke business complex). Office hours are Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

All monetary donations go directly to grocery purchases and related expenses. SBCO and TCFB are both all-volunteer organizations and are IRS 501(c)(3) and AZ non-profit charitable organizations, so donations made to these organizations are tax deductible.

On Saturday, March 14, food donations need to be placed at the curb for pick up by 8 a.m. Each unit will be given a list of suggested food items to donate based on TCFB’s needs. Food donations will be taken to the MountainView Clubhouse parking lot for sorting, boxing and delivery to TCFB.

If you live in SaddleBrooke and would like to volunteer for the Food Drive, email Andrea Stephens at [email protected]. SaddleBrooke Ranch residents should email Marian Bianchini at [email protected].