With rising food costs, more and more families are struggling to put food on the table.

Nowhere is this more evident than in Washington state.

The Auburn Food Bank has been struggling to meet the demands of a community in need, their current space was bursting at the seams and finding a way to feed their community was becoming harder. 

However, just in time for Thanksgiving, a miracle unfolded, revealing the compassion of an anonymous donor who stepped forward with an $800,000 gift, promising a brighter future for the struggling food bank.

“Auburn Food Bank got our Christmas miracle at Thanksgiving,” exclaimed Debbie Christian, the executive director, upon receiving the life-changing call from a woman representing a businessman who wished to remain anonymous. The donor, the caller said, had a genuine interest in seeing the program expand and succeed.

Photo courtesy of Auburn Food Bank

The journey toward this miracle began in early 2020, before the pandemic hit, when the food bank wanted to move from a cramped space in the middle of a housing complex to a city-owned complex. 

However, unforeseen challenges like inflation, rising food prices, and construction costs forced them to put the project on hold.

We had a dream of moving for 17 years. I had six years on the board before that, and that whole time, there’s been this dream of moving,” Christian said.

Despite investing over $1.5 million into their new home, the food bank faced a staggering $800,000 debt, hindering their ability to move forward. The anonymous businessman’s generosity not only wiped out this debt but also allowed the Auburn Food Bank to relocate to a remodeled tavern. The new space offers five times more space and the capacity to serve a larger community.

“We had this large debt in our lap, it was $800,000. Labor went up, lumber goes up, cement problems happen, we had to put in an extra fire hydrant outside,” Christian explained.

The news came as a surprise to Christian and her staff, who had been working tirelessly to overcome the challenges in their journey. The anonymous donor, a man of faith, exemplified the true spirit of giving by making sure the food bank could move forward without any financial burden.

Photo courtesy of Auburn Food Bank

“I wasn’t in the office much of the day, and then I had them all come to a staff meeting and get their phones out. I had taken a picture of the check. Of course, I cropped it down so the name was gone, and the bank account number was gone,” Christian said, describing the moment she shared the news with her staff.

Relocation had been a long-standing dream for the Auburn Food Bank, and the anonymous donation finally turned that dream into a reality. Christian, reflecting on the decades-long conversation about moving, expressed her gratitude for the family that owns the Sports Page Tavern mall, which welcomed the food bank into the area.

“I looked at the building a long time, trying to figure out whether it was going to be opened up for us, and then, when it was, it was, ‘Oh, my goodness, this is really happening, Christian said.

Now we’ve got something concrete here to really dream about and to try to get our heads wrapped around that.”

While the move is expected to take place in January, the impact of this generous act is already evident, she said. The food bank can anticipate serving even more families, and the added space will facilitate the receipt of larger food donations.

In the end, the anonymous donation also became a symbol of hope and community support. It reminds us that even during the most challenging of times, there are angels among us.

Watch below for a look at how the food pantry is using the generous donation!

Sources: The Messenger | Kent Reporter