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A mobile home park manager who makes sure her tenants have enough food.
Pat Blake manages two Davis County, Utah mobile home parks, Apple Acres (of which she is a resident) and Willow Pines.
With recent rent hikes in most mobile home communities, many families struggle to pay rent, and pay for groceries and other necessities.
When she saw many parents struggling to feed their families, Pat felt compelled to do something about it, for as a child, she too knew what it was like to go hungry.
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Using her own money, she went to a grocery store and bought bread, jars of peanut butter and cans of soup, and told her residents to stop by the office and help themselves.
That is a very tall order, for Pat oversees 120 families in Willow Pines and 45 in Apple Acres.
"I started bringing food in for people, just a little at a time," 79-year-old Pat told The Washington Post.
"And then I realized that I had a huge room behind my office that wasn't being used, and I could do more," as she turned that room into a pantry.
Pat then called upon Bountiful Food Pantry, which gathers food donations and provides them to those in need across Davis County.
Twice a month, Bountiful provides food to Pat's pantry.
To hold everything, Pat used her own money to buy a refrigerator, to store meat, eggs, cheese, milk and other perishables.
Now residents of her mobile home parks have enough to eat regardless of their finances.
"Needing groceries is nothing to be ashamed of," Pat said. "We could all use a boost sometimes. These families need someone, and I'm happy that I can be that person to help."
Editor's Note:
To learn more https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/04/09/mobile-home-food-pat-blake/ and https://bountifulfoodpantry.org/.
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