By admin 
TUCSON, Ariz. (13 News) – Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona has merged with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona, a move officials say is driven by long-term operational and financial sustainability — not an immediate issue.
Read more Teacher who was given months to live celebrates 10 years in remission after cancer trial
The merger starts Oct. 1. Officials said there will be no interruption to service, and operations will continue as normal for at least the next year.
Mobile Meals serves more than 700 clients and relies almost exclusively on volunteer distribution across 29 delivery routes, supported by approximately 200 volunteers. Nine staff members in the kitchen produce more than 90,000 meals per year.
“We are a very, very lean team,” said Mobile Meals of Southern Arizona CEO L’Don Sawyer. “And so for a nonprofit our size, if one person calls out sick, we have no bench strength.”
Sawyer said the kitchen infrastructure already in place at the Community Food Bank made it the right partner for the merger.
Sio Castillo, chief development officer for the Community Food Bank, said the merger will allow for a more efficient operation by absorbing some of Mobile Meals’ existing partnerships.
“A lot of the hurdles sometimes fall in their financing, and one of the things the Community Food Bank does really well, we’re pretty diversified,” Castillo said. “Yes, we have government grants. We have private foundations. We have individual donors.”
The closure of Catholic Community Services’ congregate meal program is an example of the impacts faced by smaller nonprofits with state and grant funding — support that dwindled following the pandemic.
Read more Avondale man arranges sex with ‘teen,’ busted in civilian sting, police say
Pat Lukas, a Mobile Meals client, said the program has been critical since his disability limited his ability to prepare food.
“I lost my ability to make food every single night of my life,” Lukas said. “It was really a desperate situation, and I had to get food security.”
Lukas said the meals are easy to prepare and described the experience as “heating up mom’s leftovers.”
Officials said the merger is also expected to expand operations in the future through access to a larger volunteer pool.
Are you streaming 13 News?
Watch a free live stream of Tucson Now and 13 News at TucsonNow.Live.
Be sure to download the free Tucson Now app, which you can find on Apple and Google.
If you are using a desktop computer, you can use your mobile device to scan the QR code below.
Read more FDA panel’s peptide vote raises alarms among Phoenix-area health experts
You can submit your breaking news or weather images here.