San Joaquin Regional Transit District (RTD) will hold its 17th Annual Stuff the Bus food drive Friday, November 20, through Sunday, November 22. RTD will once again lead a countywide effort, joined by the Greater Yosemite Council Boy Scouts and transit agencies in Lodi, Manteca, and Escalon to collect food for the following nonprofit agencies in their respective communities: Greater Stockton Emergency Food Bank, Salvation Army, Second Harvest Food Bank, and Escalon CARE. The food collected will feed thousands of San Joaquin County residents this holiday season.
RTD began Stuff the Bus in 1999 as a food drive campaign that encourages area residents to “stuff” an RTD bus with food donations to benefit local nonprofit agencies. Agencies will also accept turkey and meat donations for families to use for holiday dinners. Over the past 17 years, RTD and its campaign partners have collected over 245,000 pounds of food to help those in need during the holiday season.
For the third year in a row, Boy Scouts – Greater Yosemite Council will participate in Stuff the Bus through the Scouting for Food Program. On November 14, the Scouts will begin placing door hangers requesting nonperishable food items. The Scouts will return to collect the food on November 21 and drop the donations off at Stuff the Bus locations. Last year, the Scouts collected 15,474 pounds of food to drop off at Stuff the Bus events.
Stuff the Bus will be held at four locations this year: Food 4 Less stores on Hammer Lane in Stockton, in Lodi, and in Manteca; and Big Boy Market in Escalon. Participants can register to win raffle prizes at Food 4 Less locations in Stockton, Lodi, and Manteca. Event participants at the Escalon location will receive 10% off any food purchased at Big Boy Market.
The Stockton Food 4 Less on Hammer Lane will accept donations Friday and Saturday from 9 am to 6 pm and Sunday from 10 am to 5 pm. The Lodi Food 4 Less will accept donations Friday from 10 am to 6 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm. The Manteca Food 4 Less will accept donations Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm. Big Boy Market in Escalon will accept donations Friday from 12 pm to 6 pm and Saturday and Sunday from 12 pm to 4 pm. On Friday, November 20, KWIN DJs and the KWIN Party Patrol will broadcast live at all events throughout the day.
Area food banks serve nutritious food to thousands of people daily and over 100,000 men, women, and children annually in San Joaquin County. RTD and its campaign partners, Boy Scouts, Lodi Grapeline, Manteca Transit, Escalon eTrans, KWIN/KWNN (97.7/98.3), The Record, Food 4 Less, and Big Boy Market are proud to serve our community through the annual Stuff the Bus food drive and to assist the food banks in feeding the area’s hungry during the holiday season.
For more information on Stuff the Bus, including a list of suggested food items needed for donation, visit www.sanjoaquinRTD.com/stuffthebus. For event updates, follow San Joaquin RTD on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and look for the event hashtag #stuffthebus.