Pinellas Park Food Bank Helps 1.9 Million Families Over 13 Years
Since 2012, The Kind Mouse in Pinellas Park has helped feed 1.9 million Tampa Bay families. This local food bank now works with 30 area schools, getting food to kids who need it most.
After losing her job as an architectural draftsman in the 2012 downturn, Gina Wilkins created something unexpected. “It’s all little, as I call little finger foods. Vienna sausage, cans of ravioli, granola bars, milk, juice and cereal. Things that a little one can open up by themselves,,” she told Fox 13 News.
Through their “Mouse Nibbles” program, they now help over 83,000 people each year. The weekend service ensures students don’t go hungry when school cafeterias are closed.
Faith ‘Twixie Mouse’ Lavere took over leading young volunteers in 2019. Having faced hunger herself, she now teaches kids aged 5-12 in Mice In Training and teens 13-18 in the Mice Interns program.
“I was wanting to do something that involved kids and you can do whenever you want but still make a difference in their community,” Faith ‘Twixie Mouse” Lavere said to Fox 13 News.
When disaster hit, they sprang into action. The team gave out $65,000 in food after hurricanes Helene and Milton hit the area. The organization will be celebrating giving away 1 million snack packs later this year.
Two main fundraisers help keep their work going: “Mice and Dice: Casino Night” kicks off March 29, while the annual MouseQuerade honors young volunteers and raises needed donations.
