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Pantry seeks $50,000 for delivery truck to help procure produce

Hopkinton Scouts organize containers of on a loading dock at Project Just Because as part of the annual Scouting for Food drive last year. PHOTO/JOHN CARDILLO

Project Just Because has launched an ambitious campaign: raise enough money to buy a truck.

Last week, the non-profit announced on Facebook that it is looking to raise $50,000 for a “dock-height truck” that will help it transport more food to its pantry. “This truck is especially needed to transport large fresh produce donations, and bringing that into the pantry has become expensive and difficult,” according to the post.

Shana Adams, PJB’s executive director and grant writer, said the truck helps the organization procure fresh produce that is often hard to come by and has extra fees attached. She detailed how PJB has been working with a produce vendor, but transporting the pallets of food it has currently requires volunteers using their own vehicles, which have limited space.

“We found a company that could deliver, but to deliver was over $15,000,” Adams said. “We figured that wasn’t a very good investment.”

After doing some math, PJB staff realized that the truck was the cheaper option.

The total price tag on the 26-foot dock height box truck is $76,000. Adams noted that a generous donor has offered to do a match of $37,000, and the $50,000 PJB is asking for will help cover both paying for the truck and associated costs such as insurance and registration.

Apart from the cost savings on deliveries, a truck can save valuable volunteer hours, Adams explained. “With the box truck, we could take in 12-14 pallets in one trip,” she said. Volunteers using their own cars would have to take multiple trips to achieve the same result. Freeing up driving and loading time will help PJB volunteers focus on other needs, she added.

Adams called the truck a “dire need” for the non-profit and community members in need. PJB serves 950 families a week and resources are already strained, Adams noted. The extra produce will help provide healthful options for families and can be stored in PJB’s 50-foot freezer trailer to extend its shelf life when needed.

“It’s going to save us time, volunteer hours — all sorts of great stuff,” said Adams.

— NICK SCHOFIELD

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Photo of the Day

Attendees roast marshmallows during the Friends of Hopkinton’s inaugural Fire & Light event at the Town Common on Saturday. Click here for more photos.

PHOTO/JOHN CARDILLO