Orange County’s growing senior population presents a pressing issue: Many older adults are deeply vulnerable to poverty due to fixed incomes. This means they often sacrifice their food budget—especially while grocery prices are skyrocketing—for necessities such as rent or medication. What are they to do? Second Harvest Food Bank is able to come to the rescue, providing free, nutritious food through a pair of walk-up, refrigerated “Park-It Markets (PIMs)” housed in trailers. By rolling right up to senior centers throughout the county, Park-It Markets solve the problem for 2,500 local seniors each month who might be experiencing mobility issues. The vehicles also help older adults overcome loneliness as they gather and “shop” for their own nutritious food alongside their neighbors.
It all starts bright and early every weekday. Volunteers load up the vehicles with a bounty of fresh vegetables, milk, eggs, and grains at Second Harvest’s distribution center. When PIM 1 debuted in 2018, it was the first of its kind in the nation; now PIM 2—lovingly called “Granny’s Market” in honor of the mother of the donor whose generous contribution helped to launch it—incorporates new senior-focused features like lower shelving and the ability to serve two sites in a single trip!
In recognition of Senior Hunger Awareness Month in April, Reveille recently invited local media to Villa Anaheim Apartments to witness the Park-It Market program firsthand and raise awareness about this vital service for seniors. As a result of these efforts, “Granny’s Market” was featured in notable media outlets including The Orange County Register, MSN.com, Daily Pilot, Irvine World News, North County News Tribune, KNBC-TV, Telemundo, KNX Radio and Village Television, to name a few.
