ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. — As TSA agents continue to work without pay during the partial government shutdown, members of the community are stepping up to help them keep food on the table.
Volunteers at the Anne Arundel County Food Bank have been filling 600 boxes each week with grocery staples.
"We want to be able to help. People need food," volunteer Mary Brigid Frye said. "I picked up a couple of additional shifts this week just to help them move it because there's certainly a need for it. Usually, we don't have this many people all in one day."
Community providing hundreds of meals for TSA agents weekly during partial shutdown
The initiative started with a call for help from someone at BWI.
“Whenever we can, we want to respond as quickly as possible. In this instance, thanks to the generosity of our county, which had made some resources available during the last shutdown, some of the remaining resources were able to be redirected here,” Anne Arundel County Food Bank CEO Leah Paley said.
The Anne Arundel County Office of Emergency Management provided the funding to make the donations happen.
"In addition to shelf-stable items, we'll also be providing some produce, onions, potatoes, apples. We want to provide a full meal," Paley said.
Neighbors have also helped out by dropping off donations. World Central Kitchen is also delivering meals from local restaurants like Miss Shirley's Cafe. All of these efforts are making an impact.
"I received a call from one of the TSA workers at the airport, and she reached out and spoke with our receptionist and said just how grateful she was to receive the box and just felt that it really did make a difference," Paley said.
If you want to drop off donations, you can do so at the food bank or click here. If you want to volunteer, click here.
click here
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
