Bluffton Distribution finds all the ways it can to give back to the local community. Located in Bluffton, Indiana about two hours north of Indianapolis, the volunteer-run organization serves locals referred to it by the welfare office, which equals about 175-225 families every month. Bluffton offers food, clothing, and personal items, and regularly re-stocks them for local families. Open Tuesdays and Thursdays, Kroger’s Bluffton Distribution Center provides a needed service to people in the Bluffton community.
While unsure how Bluffton Distribution Center became involved with Second Helpings, Coordinator Connie Kaehr and her husband Lyle have coordinated the donations to Second Helpings almost every year since 2005. When they receive a surplus of food they are unable to process and handle, they load it into semi-trucks and take it down to Second Helpings. “We donate drinks, soups, broths, and other items,” Kaehr stated. As a result of these large and generous donations, Bluffton Distribution Center has given over 915,000 pounds of food to Second Helpings, which Director of Hunger Relief Chef Liz Gimenez explained greatly helps the Hunger Relief kitchen. “Bluffton’s donations can be used in diverse ways – we use the already-made chicken stock to thin out sauces. Tomato soup can be used to help make chili or spaghetti. We don’t have to produce the food – it’s already made and ready for use in the kitchen.”
“Even though Second Helpings is two hours away, we like what the organization is doing with rescued food – it’s a good thing. We started to give and have kept giving,” Kaehr explained. “The food is not wasted and it’s being shared for those in the community.”
“We’re happy with the partnership,” Kaehr finished. “In the long run, it’s about everyone helping everyone out.”
Thanks to organizations like Bluffton Distribution Center, locals in northern Indiana are receiving important necessities and hungry people in central Indiana are also receiving hot, nutritious meals – essential during the cold winds of winter.