Rebuilding Together helps vets with food giveaway event
It is a sad occurrence when a veteran returns home from active duty and is ignored or forgotten. Rebuilding Together made sure that didn’t happen on Saturday.
The local nonprofit organization held a Food Giveaway for Solano County Veterans at the Vallejo Veterans Building, and ended up distributing 20-pound boxes of non-perishable good to approximately 70 veteran families during the four-hour event.
Those attending the drive-through event had to show a driver’s license ( proving they were a Solano County resident) along with a military ID card, veteran affairs ID card or their DD-214.
The event was coordinated by many volunteers as well as Rebuilding Together Executive Director Elizabeth Hoffman.
“The great thing about this event is that everyone helping out is either a veteran or is married to a veteran,” Hoffman said. “I’m glad to be able to help out and I’m so pleased and really touched that we can do something like this.”
Hoffman said the boxes included perishable goods, while some boxes were non-perishable. Boxes included canned goods, peanut butter, rice, spaghetti, oatmeal and masks. Boxes also had personally signed cards from volunteers including those from Cal Maritime University.
Although the drivers didn’t have to get out of their cars upon receiving the boxes, some often did (with a mask) and were able to talk with the other veterans helping out. Avelino Mendoza, a Navy veteran, was one of those glad to talk with other vets.
“It feels good to help out. I started doing this in 2018,” Mendoza said. “I’m grateful to do this because sometimes a lot of people don’t know about it and it’s a good way to help out.”
Arles De Mayo, an Air Force veteran, liked talking with other veterans as well.
“There is a cammraderie, a brotherhood, where
you all know the lingo,” De Mayo said. “Other people that aren’t veterans, they won’t really know what we are talking about. For me I like finding out where they served and if I can find out what station it is, that adds even more to the bonding. There is more connectivity that way.”
Vietnam veteran Manny Concepcion, felt the same way.
“It feels great, and you really learn a lot when you find out some guys here were in World War II or the Korean War,” Concepcion said. “We will talk about our service and sometimes tease each other about it. It’s a unique conversation. It’s very united and it’s like having extra brothers and sisters.”
Since 2018, Rebuilding Together had dedicated its time to low-income veterans, seniors and disabled
residents. Its mission is to repair homes, revitalize communities and rebuild lives. It offers a weekly food pantry to veterans, seniors and disabled residents through the Feeding America Program of the Solano/ Contra Costa Food Bank. Despite the COV ID-19 pandemic, Rebuilding Together Solano County has expanded its food pantry from 250 households a month to more than 1,000. The amount of food distributed on a weekly basis has increased from 750 pounds to more than 9,000 a week.
Hoffman was happy to thanks Rebuilding Together’s many sponsors, including Costco Vallejo, Wells Fargo, Phillips 66, Benicia’s Valero Refinery and local residents just to name a few.
Also going above and beyond to help out veterans each week is veteran Wil
fred Alexander, who while giving a tour of the Veterans Building on Saturday, seemed prouder than a student graduating with honors as he showed off what he calls his “Brag wall” full of military accomplishments. Alexander also helps out Rebuilding Together and veterans by driving his truck to pick up food at the Solano and Contra Costa Food Banks for giveaway events.
On Thursday’s he takes his truck and picks up water at Costco to deliver it to those who need it at the Community Presbyterian Church on Georgia Street in Vallejo.
“It feels great to help out like this. It is like a light shining through my heart,” Alexander said. “I volunteer every chance I get.”