BY PEPPER FISHER
Port Angeles – The Port Angeles Food Bank recently got a major upgrade to the van they use to distribute food to folks who might not otherwise have access to their services, and that’s affecting a lot of people in a good way.
Until recently, driving produce and other perishable goods from one end of the county to the other has meant putting it all in multiple coolers with ice. It was inefficient, and ice isn’t free. Then the folks at the Food Bank got the idea to convert the van and fill it with refrigerators and freezers. They applied for and received a grant from Olympic Community of Health, and began looking for a company that could make their idea work. Enter Camp N Car of Port Townsend.
“Yeah, so the food bank did get a grant, and they had looked into some options that, you know, we’re more expensive or further away, and ultimately reached out to us and it was a natural fit for our skills as a company to be able to help them with the build. So, we just jumped in and designed something that, you know, really specifically met their needs with a van they already had and it was really, ultimately, a pretty smooth process. Just a natural fit of their needs and our skills and, yeah, we’re really happy with how it turned out.”
That’s Steve Moore, a Sequim High School grad and founding partner of Camp N Car. They’ve been converting vans into campers for 7 years, but turning the food bank’s van into a refrigerator-packed delivery unit was something new. The food bank’s Assistant Director Hermina Solomon says finding Moore and his partners began with a Google search and it took off from there.
“They got it done really quickly, and they were just willing to…you know, they had to wait on payments because it’s a grant and, you know, things like that. And when you’re a small organization or a company trying to make a living, you know, it takes a little bit of patience with nonprofits. And they really helped us out, and were willing to be patient with us and all the funding and also, you know, gave us a bit of a deal on their labor, and just made sure that they were real partners in this partnership. They weren’t just “on paper” partners. They really stepped up.”
Moore says their design for the van did more than get them out of using coolers and ice. It brought the food bank’s delivery service into the 21st century.
“Yeah, so, modern van conversions have really great tech available, you know, for battery systems and off-grid electrical. And so we used an EcoFlo power bank system that has more than enough amp hours for them to be able to run all four of those fridges and freezers for an entire day or two, without having to be plugged in. It also helps that the system charges while it drives, and it has solar panels. And then, when it’s back at the food bank, they do plug it in. But it’s a completely self-contained, off-grid electrical system. No generator necessary to run any of that stuff. It’s just modern van life electrical systems at play.”
Camp N Car put together a short documentary-style video about the project, and you can also check out campncar.com to learn more about the company.
(PA Food Bank photo: Hermina Solomon and Steve Moore)