TAMPA, Fla. — This week’s Everyday Hero has been helping feed her community for decades.
And Lea Merrill-Davidson-Bern said she feels she has the best job in the world. Merrill-Davidson Bern spends a lot of time in Citrus Park at the nonprofit Tampa Jewish Family Services community center where she is director of the community food bank and volunteer director. She makes sure the food bank keeps food available to families and individuals.
What You Need To Know
- Lea Merrill-Davidson-Bern, the TJFS Director of the Community Food Bank, is this week's Everyday Hero
- Tampa Jewish Family Services
- Nominate an Everyday Hero
The location feeds an average of over 650 Hillsborough County families monthly.
“I tell people the most amazing job in the world,” she said. “The best job in the world. We are making an immediate difference in people’s lives every single day.”
And Lea said this has been going on for a long, long time.
“We have been doing this since the depression,” she said. “Tampa Jewish Family Services opened up a food bank when people were in need right after the Great Depression. We have been moving along with our food bank ever since.”
Along with the food bank the list of services available at Tampa Jewish Family Services includes financial assistance, a psychological and social wellness center, and a cancer survivors’ network. Lea, who has been here for almost 20 years said this about one of her favorite prayer book passages.
“It’s very important for people to be aware of the needs of the community,” she said. “To help those don’t put a stone block before the blind. Help the people you can.”