Eloise’s Cooking Pot gives out an average of 1.5 to 1.7 million pounds of food per month and is now the largest independent food bank in Pierce County. (KOMO)

Every Wednesday, Sheree Staples drives her car to the Tacoma Dome.

“I’ll get teary-eyed because it’s not just me or someone in my situation, it’s so many people,” said Sheree Staples.

For the last two years, Staples has been coming here to get food for her family. She isn’t alone.

During a visit from KOMO News, our crews saw dozens of cars lined up.

Ahndrea Blue is the President and CEO of the Making A Difference Foundation. She says they serve about 400 people every Wednesday at the Tacoma Dome through Eloise’s Cooking Pot, an emergency food distribution program.

Blue started Eloise’s Cooking Pot Food Bank in 2009 when she noticed two children in the building she owned were hungry. Blue says when she started the food bank she didn’t realize that its location was in a food desert, which means there were no grocery stores within two to three miles of it.

Then the COVID-19 pandemic hit, and the need for help doubled in 48 hours. Before the pandemic, they served about 15,000 people per month. Today they serve 75,000 people a month.

The drive-thru food distribution at the Tacoma Dome was born from the pandemic and continues today.

“We were doing this in the heart of McKinley Avenue and the line basically circled the entire community. Tacoma graciously reached out to us and asked if we wanted to have it here, and it’s just been amazing,” said Blue.

Since it started 16 years ago, Eloise’s Cooking Pot has only grown.

“We’ve moved from one brick and mortar, which is on McKinley Avenue. We’re in the process of building a ‘no cost’ grocery store, 5,000 square feet, on McKinley Avenue. We also deliver to over 3,000 people each week through DoorDash, Amazon, and our fleet of 15 vehicles and drivers,” Blue said.

She continued that they partner with 25 other organizations: Probation programs, Raymond Hall, juvenile court, Tacoma School District, Bethel School District, smaller Eloise’s programs within schools, and 3 mobile food banks – one that serves unhoused people and two others that serve the community.

Eloise’s Cooking Pot gives out an average of 1.5 to 1.7 million pounds of food per month and is now the largest independent food bank in Pierce County.

Blue attributes the need to a number of things.

“I think it’s a combination of things. One of the biggest increases [is that] people have gotten really comfortable with raising their hand saying they need food. We made it acceptable to say ‘It’s okay we’re all in this together,’ Blue said.

That’s very much how Sheree Staples feels. “Eloise’s Cooking Pot and everyone who works here they’re so respectful, they don’t make you feel less than,” she said.

Blue also noted the economy and how it increases the need for help.

“Rising food costs have tripled since COVID-19. The rising food costs along with rising rents. People trying to make ends meet has put them in peculiar situations around food,” she said.

And Blue expects the need only to grow.

“I expect the need to continue to increase, but I also expect that we’re going to be in a trying time. Just with our organization alone there’s been a decrease in food. There’s more people saying they need food, but there’s a decrease in funding and a decrease in actual availability of food. And that’s just a horrible combination right now,” she said.

“There shouldn’t be anyone, in my belief, needing food. I think we truly need to rally together around this issue,” she added.