TEMPE, AZ — On Thursday, a local organization is stepping up in a big way to help a Tempe food pantry.
The Tempe Diablos are donating about $23,000 worth of food to the Tempe Community Action Agency. It's part of their "Feed the Need" initiative, which started at the beginning of the pandemic to help those facing food insecurity.
Officials at TCAA tell ABC15 they've seen an increase in the number of people coming to them for food. They've served about 800 households over the past few months. That's an estimated 135,000 pounds of food.
Joshua Rhode has used TCAA's food pantry twice a month for the past year and a half. He says he has a job but still finds it difficult to make ends meet.
"We started hesitating a little bit and we decided let's go ahead and accept the help," he said. "Being able to come down here, especially between paydays is a huge benefit."
Linda Vick not only visits the pantry to get food, but she volunteers her time there as well.
"They've helped me through some really bad times," she said. "It's a fun place. You're helping others."