ST PAUL, Minn. — Hundreds of volunteers gathered in Roy Wilkins Auditorium in Saint Paul to pack meals as part of a 9/11 Day of Service event, for the Cross Services food shelf in the Northwest Metro and Second Harvest Heartland, which is handling distribution of the food.
"Food insecurity in Minnesota continues to rise so events like this are critical, especially the holiday season is just around the corner so we think of the extra budget strain on families in the community this is coming at a great time," Anne Laskey of Second Harvest Heartland told KARE.
Among the meal packers was Governor Tim Walz, just back from a vice presidential campaign stop in Arizona. He thanked volunteers on the packing line for spending part of their day helping to feed people.
Minutes earlier, he spoke to the whole room about the significance of public service on 9/11.
"It may have not lasted as long as we'd liked, but there was a moment around shared values. There was a moment of unity about caring for one another," Gov. Walz told the crowd. "It’s in the times of need that we become our very best. It’s in the time of trauma that we rise to the occasion, and so thank you all for being here today."
Volunteers also heard from Cindy McGinty, a board member with the 9/11 Day organization. McGinty, who lives in Massachusetts, lost her husband Mike in the North Tower during the attack. She talked of an acquaintance who owned a landscaping company who started mowing her lawn for free after the attack and kept doing it until she moved away eight years later.
"The terrorists thought they could tear us apart," she said. "But what they really did was they brought us together, and that's what 9/11 is really about."
The goal for AmeriCorps volunteers and others who filled the auditorium was to create and pack 230,000 oatmeal instant breakfast meals.
"They approached us at AmeriCorps and said, 'We need help finding more people to help. We need to pack a lot of boxes.' So, we were proud to partner with them and find AmeriCorps members to help out today," Julia Quanrud of the nonprofit Serve MN told KARE. "It is a real need. We know in Minnesota families are struggling. And, so, to come together like this and support organizations like Second Harvest heartland is a really incredible thing to do."