Jaime Mira, manager of the Christian Center of Park City's Mobile Food Pantry program. Photo: Michele Roepke // TownLift

PARK CITY, Utah — The Christian Center’s Mobile Food Pantry program will begin its summer distribution schedule on May 15. The nonprofit’s need for food increased 22% during the 2023 calendar year.

Jaime Mira is the program’s manager. He told TownLift, “I have an amazing team of staff and volunteers that I’m grateful for, and without whom we could never do all the great work we get to do throughout the entire community. It’s wonderful to see all the families that come out to these events and get to see each other sometimes for the first social time after a hard-working winter.”

Nonprofit’s like the People’s Health Clinic, Summit Community Gardens, Mountain Mediation, Hope Alliance, Summit and Wasatch Health Departments and the Summit County Sheriff’s Department partner with the Christian Center to make this mobile program possible.

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Sometimes, some of the donated food products come from Smith’s, Macey’s, Fresh Market, Starbucks, Walmart, Park City Bread and Bagel, and Whole Foods.

Documented proof of financial need is neither requested nor required.

Although Mira helps find and/or facilitate food resources for all those who are in need, he prioritizes year-round locals. Over the winter, when the lines at the food pantry started wrapping around the building, he and his colleagues implemented a successful, staggered system whereby locals lines were served earlier in the day with J1 residents a couple hours later, still ensuring, however, that the community-at-large had its needs met.

For the mobile program, Mira works closely with the Utah Community Action Network double checking that their food distribution dates and locations align such that there’s no overlap.

Donations to and purchases from the Christian Center’s thrift stores assist in keeping such community programs going. For example, during the interview for this article a nondescript car pulled in to the Drop-Off Center and a nondescript-looking resident donated a nondescript piece of furniture.

It turned out to be none other than Olympic gold medal ski racer, local Ted Ligety making one of his frequent donations which often include gently used U.S. Ski Team parkas rarely available in stores. His jacket’s, if lucky enough to come across one on the clothing store’s racks, can be purchased for pennies on the dollar, shoppers know they’ve scored one because on the part where a name can be written, there’s just one word, “Ted.”

Locations on the routes are: