Northwest Harvest hosted an event on Feb 10 to celebrate a long partnership with the Employees Community Fund of Boeing (ECF) – Puget Sound Chapter and to showcase a new forklift at the Northwest Harvest SODO Community Market purchased with an ECF grant.
Why it matters: The new forklift replaces an old, failing unit, improving safety for staff and volunteers and helping the market open reliably for shoppers.
Driving the news: Northwest Harvest runs community markets and food distribution centers across Washington state. The SODO Community Market operates like a grocery store with no prices, relying on volunteers and dependable equipment to move product, preserve fresh items and set up each morning.
- Failures of the previous forklift forced more manual unloading and delayed market openings for the many SODO shoppers who arrive early in the morning.
- Reliable material-handling equipment affects how quickly volunteers can set up, how fresh produce is preserved and how many people the market can serve in a morning shift.
How it helps: The new forklift’s reliability, tight turning radius and ability to navigate uneven property terrain let staff move pallets faster and more safely in the market’s compact space.
- Certified operators reduce manual handling, lower injury risk and cut setup time so volunteers can focus on serving shoppers instead of heavy lifting.
What they’re saying:
- “Everyone’s certified on the new forklift, and that confidence means we can open on time with no delays," said Roy McCree, SODO community market manager. "Shoppers often arrive early in the cold and rain, so consistency matters. The new forklift reduces manual unloading, lowers staff stress and gives us the confidence to get going each morning.”
The big picture: Founded in 1967, Northwest Harvest is a nonprofit organization working to end hunger and food insecurity in Washington State by operating local community markets and providing millions of pounds of food each year to a network of 375 food programs across the state. Northwest Harvest is one of Boeing’s partners in the annual Food & Essentials Drive. This employee community engagement drive will launch in early March.