OCOEE, Fla. — Southeastern Food Bank is stepping in to help those in Orange County that won't have what they need to celebrate Thanksgiving.

Their goal is to give out boxes filled with food, but they need more volunteer drivers to make that happen.

With prices on just about everything going up, Orange County has seen a 75% spike in homelessness from pre-pandemic levels, according to the Homeless Services Network.

Others in the area are still in their home, but having a hard time paying for groceries.

“If we don’t have enough drivers, then unfortunately we are not able to deliver all the food that needs to be delivered, so it is really important for us to have a lot of drivers so we can get the food to the people that need it,” said Carlyn LaCaze, office assistant at Southeastern Food Bank.

LaCaze and her husband have been helping pack up boxes full of things needed for a Thanksgiving meal, which they call Food for Families.

“We love being able to help people that need help,” said LaCaze. “My husband and I both came from a place in our past where we needed help in certain areas of our life and we just love the pay it forward attitude where you’re putting others of above yourself and looking out for the community.”

While it’s a tradition going on 30 years at the food bank, this year is hard. Donations are coming in every day, but they are going out just as quickly, with more people than ever needing help.

“I’ve noticed that there are very many people in need of food. We constantly have people calling us on the phone and asking us for food. I probably get 15 phone calls a day,” said. LaCaze. “When you go to the grocery store can see the prices of at least 10% this year and people just don’t have the money to buy what they need to buy.”

That is why they are hoping to get as many of these boxes delivered as possible on Thanksgiving morning.

“We target the neighborhoods that are the most impoverished in West Orange County, and most of the time those are places where people don’t have vehicles and they don’t have access to transportation," said LaCaze.

They are hoping more people will be willing to spend some time picking up these boxes from West Orlando Baptist Church and delivering them to pre-selected families in West Orange County. 

“If you want to deliver three boxes, five boxes, 20 boxes, whatever you want to deliver, we can accommodate you with a route for that,” said LaCaze. 

A perfect way to give thanks.

“That is what Thanksgiving is all about, helping people in need and being grateful for you have and sharing it with those that are less fortunate than yourself,” said LaCaze. 

If you want to help out, register here or just show up at the West Orlando Baptist Church in Ocoee between 7:30 a.m. and 8:00 a.m. on Thanksgiving morning. If you can’t help out this time, they are doing another Food for Families delivery event on Dec. 16 ahead of Christmas. 

LaCaze shared that they are always accepting monetary donations and donations of food.