{"id":630,"date":"2026-05-15T06:04:23","date_gmt":"2026-05-15T06:04:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=630"},"modified":"2026-05-15T06:04:23","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T06:04:23","slug":"echo-helps-community-members-in-need-with-an-army-of-volunteers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tampamovingjournal.com\/?p=630","title":{"rendered":"ECHO helps community members in need with an army of volunteers"},"content":{"rendered":"

RIVERVIEW, Fla.<\/strong> – <\/span>ECHO, or Emergency Care Help Organization, has been helping families in crisis in Eastern Hillsborough County since 1987.<\/p>

Read more Tampa Bay Buccaneers release 2026 NFL schedule<\/a><\/p>

Stamp out Hunger Food Drive<\/h2>

By the numbers:<\/p>

<\/div>

Recently, an estimated 60,000 pounds of food ended up in ECHO’s Riverview building thanks to the National Association of Letter Carriers’ annual Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive.\u00a0<\/p>

“It equates to about 50,000 meals. It’s the largest drive of the year,” ECHO Development Manager Steve McKinnon said. “It helps sustain us for a couple of months.”<\/p>

ECHO partners with food drive<\/h2>

The backstory:<\/p>

ECHO was founded in 1987. The non-profit has been partnering with the food drive for the last two decades.\u00a0<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

“This is right out of someone’s pantry. All of this, when it’s all said and done, came on Saturday from residential homes,” McKinnon said.\u00a0<\/p>

Volunteers assist<\/h2>

Dig deeper:<\/p>

Lots of donations require a lot of volunteers to help sort all of it.\u00a0<\/p>

Various community partners, including Coca-Cola, Chadwell Supply and Mosaic, send in teams to help all week long. Volunteers from Mosaic recently helped sort around 3,000 pounds and helped re-organize the clothing room.\u00a0<\/p>

“ECHO is built on a volunteer basis,” McKinnon said. “For the food drive, there’s no way we could do all of this without all our volunteers.”<\/p>

Read more Tampa city leaders approve $35M to jumpstart work for Ybor Harbor waterfront development<\/a><\/p>

ECHO helps families in need<\/h2>

What they’re saying:<\/p>

Long-time Mosaic volunteer Hector Mier had a friend who lost everything in a fire.\u00a0<\/p>

“I think it’s extremely important,” Mier said. “Once you lose everything, you have to have a starting point. You need something to put you back on your feet, and this is a place to do that.”<\/p>

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n <\/div>

Mier loves to see everyone coming together for a good cause, which is increasingly needed for ECHO. Normally, the organization helps around 14,000 families a year. McKinnon says they are on pace to help 34,000 this year.\u00a0<\/p>

“The economic factors with increased housing, fuel, food costs have driven demand and put a lot of our neighbors that are right on the edge over the edge,” McKinnon said. “In the last couple of years, the demand for our services has skyrocketed.”<\/p>

What’s next:<\/p>

After emergency food assistance, ECHO focuses on stabilizing the family through job placement assistance and, if needed, housing resources. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>

Read more Rising childcare costs make summer fun more difficult: Affordable Bay Area options for families<\/a><\/p>

Click here for more information.\u00a0<\/p> <\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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