Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i sends mobile pantry to aid TSA, Coast Guard workers

Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i deployed its recently dedicated refrigerated Mobile Pantry to the TSA administrative offices parking lot in Līhu‘e, distributing more than 150 emergency food packages to Transportation Security Administration administrative staff and U.S. Coast Guard personnel on Kaua‘i who have not been paid due to a partial federal pay freeze. Workers registered with Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i staff at the parking lot to pick up groceries; anyone impacted can contact Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i at 4241 Hanahao Place Ste 101, Lihue, phone 808-482-2224, SNAP email snap@hawaiifoodbankkauai.org, or kūpuna/CSFP email kupuna@hawaiifoodbankkauai.org.

The assistance came amid a freeze on the Department of Homeland Security budget tied to congressional concerns about actions by Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, a circumstance that left many TSA and Coast Guard employees required to work in essential positions while pay was suspended. Workers will not be paid until the budget is approved, although many are still required to work in essential positions, and some Kaua‘i employees are struggling to keep families fed without a full paycheck as the duration of the freeze remains uncertain.

Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i staff handed out grocery-style emergency packages that included fresh milk, eggs, bread, produce such as apples, oranges, eggplants and cucumbers, frozen chicken, and an assortment of canned goods. Photographs by Dennis Fujimoto show staff handing over bags of fresh produce and assorted nonperishables to a TSA worker and supervisor and TSA workers registering for food pickup; those images are dated March 5, 2026, while other reports list the deployment date as March 6, 2026.

The Mobile Pantry program uses 16-foot refrigerated vehicles designed as grocery-style selection sites that are generator-powered and self-sufficient, enabling rapid response during disasters and emergencies. The program put one truck on Oʻahu and one on Kauaʻi with funding from a State of Hawai‘i Grant-in-Aid plus support from local donors, volunteers and hunger-relief partners. Marielle Terbio, vice president of strategy and programs at Hawai‘i Foodbank, said, “This project has taken us three years to get off the ground, so we’re really happy to get these trucks out into the community to serve our neighbors.” Kim Bartenstein, director of agency relations, added, “We know that 1 in 3 households and 1 in 3 keiki are food insecure, and we know that this truck — this beautiful grocery store on wheels — is going to bring so much impact into the community.”

Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i operates more than 30 food partner agencies and a network of pantries and meal sites across the island. Examples include North Shore Food Pantry at Anaina Hou Community Park in Kīlauea with pantry hours Saturday 12:30pm to 2:00pm contact contact@kauaifoodpantry.org; Church of the Pacific Mobile Pantry at Anahola Beach Park on Wednesdays 10:30am to 11:30am contact 808-826-6481; Holy Cross Church Sacred Heart in Kalāheo with meals and pantry first Fridays 4:00pm to 5:00pm contact 808-332-8011; and Kaua‘i Independent Food Bank in Nāwiliwili pantry second and fourth Wednesdays 10:00am to 1:00pm call 808-246-3809 extension 0.

The deployment underscores the Mobile Pantry’s stated mission to increase food access in underserved areas on Oʻahu and Kauaʻi and the program’s role in short-term emergency relief as budgetary and policy disputes at the federal level affect essential local workers. The exact deployment date is recorded variously as March 5 and March 6, 2026; Hawai‘i Foodbank Kaua‘i can confirm distribution totals and timing at its Līhu‘e office phone 808-482-2224 or via the emails listed above.