EDWARDSVILLE – Roughly 3,000 households can receive free food next week.
From 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. or until supplies run out on Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, the St. Louis Area Foodbank will distribute groceries to community members at Ralph Korte Stadium on the SIUE campus in Edwardsville. There are no requirements and no questions will be asked.
“We want everyone to be able to take advantage of this opportunity,” said Ericka Kinkead with the foodbank. “We’re doing this for you, so we want you to be able to benefit and share this with your friends, your family, your network so they know it’s available to them as well.”
Attendees are asked not to arrive before 8 a.m. When distribution starts at 9 a.m., there will be volunteers to guide your car through the parking lot. They will load your car with 30–40 pounds of food per household. You can pick up food for up to three households per car.
Kinkead noted that this is the largest distribution event the foodbank has ever organized. She acknowledged that the foodbank is seeing “a lot of increased need” as prices rise and families juggle the government shutdown, uncertainty surrounding SNAP benefits, and other obstacles.
“Our team and product sourcing has really been busy with purchasing to make sure that we have fresh produce, dairy, protein, and a lot of really good, essential pantry staples at this event,” she added. “Just to put that into perspective, in approximately the last month, the St. Louis Area Foodbank has spent about $600,000 purchasing food for our distribution event and to get to our network of community partners, because that need in our community is just that high right now. We are really in overdrive.”
Kinkead thanked the volunteers and donors who make their work possible. She shared that 96 cents in every donated dollar goes directly to purchasing food.
Over the past week, the volunteers and foodbank employees have been busy preparing for the Nov. 20 distribution event. They hope to serve 3,000 households and share food with everyone who needs it. Kinkead encourages people to come out.
“We’re all much closer to being at that point where we need a little help than we would probably like to think,” she added. “But really, all it takes is one unexpected utility bill, one unexpected medical bill, you get in a car accident and now you don’t have your vehicle, and suddenly you’re in that position where you need a little help, and that’s okay. It’s okay to ask for that help.”
For more information about the distribution event on Nov. 20, visit the St. Louis Area Foodbank Facebook page or the official Facebook event page. To learn more about the foodbank, how to support them, or how to receive assistance, visit their official website at STLFoodbank.org.
