When the car she was driving broke down on I-75 in Sarasota early this year, Jill Collins had more than herself to worry about.

The director of nutrition education at All Faiths Food Bank was carrying food for hungry schoolchildren in North Port to take home for the weekend.

Collins got help from some passing motorists, but the food bank lost its only large-capacity passenger vehicle. That meant several months of added strain on staff and volunteers, who had to spend many additional hours transporting food and supplies for the food bank’s children’s programs.

Thanks to a $25,000 grant from Gulf Coast Community Foundation back in April, All Faiths was able to purchase a spacious cargo van. Executive director Dan Dunn stopped by the Foundation recently to show us the brand-new replacement vehicle.

“This van allows us to efficiently deliver nutritious food for our BackPack Kids Program and supplies for our Growing Healthy Kids, Operation Frontline, and Hunger 101 programs,” Dan said. “We now have all of the resources to effectively meet the needs of hungry children in our community.”

Working with more than 160 partner agenices, All Faiths distributes food for more than 40,000 people a year in Sarasota County.