Nearly 10 million pounds of food later, Second Harvest marks a decade of Permanent School Pantry program
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Julia Bautista fully understands challenges related to the cost of living in Orange County.
A resident of Santa Ana for more than two decades, she recently moved to Lake Elsinore.
She still works in Santa Ana, the place she considers her home, making the long commute each day to El Sol Academy and passing the time by listening to podcasts.
She has a market to run.
Bautista is the community coordinator for Mercado El Sol, a permanent school pantry adjacent to the school campus that serves 120 families each week.
Their stories are unique. Bautista said a man whose mother was in the hospital after suffering a heart attack visited the pantry last week for the first time and picked up needed groceries.
“He was so grateful and he was very open sharing his story,” Bautista said. “On the way out, he was asking for our names and praying for us. It was very emotional. Those are the things that motivate us to continue and to improve our services, and to look for more resources to support our community.”
Mercado El Sol is one of seven Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County Permanent School Pantries, a program that turns 10 this year.
In that decade, Second Harvest has distributed 9.9 million pounds of food through its partnerships, Second Harvest Chief Development Officer Wayne Stickney said. The total includes nearly two million pounds of food in fiscal year 2025 alone.
According to data from Feeding America, one in nine people in Orange County is food insecure, including one in eight children. September is Hunger Action Month, a nationwide campaign designed to unite food banks and the public to take action against hunger.
Monique Daviss, executive director of El Sol Academy, said the charter school’s partnership with Second Harvest actually goes back longer than 10 years. When the space became available, Mercado El Sol became the second Permanent School Pantry that was developed.
Daviss added that the program fits with the school’s wish to be connected with the community.
“It’s a natural part of what we do to have something like this,” she said. “The advantage is, you don’t have to enter the campus to do it. It’s contiguous, but you don’t have to enter where the students are. We can maintain safety, while making sure that we provide opportunity for as many people as possible.”
Food distribution is done in two-hour blocks and aided by staff and volunteers, though recipients can also call to schedule appointments. Bautista said the families, which are often referred by Get Help OC, AltaMed or Children’s Hospital of Orange County, may visit the pantry once per week.
“I think it’s a platform that allows us to establish good relationships and engage with our community on a kind of personal level,” Bautista said. “They feel comfortable, and they know that they can count on us. This is a safe space for them, and if we don’t have the resources, we will help guide them or refer them to get the resources that they need.”
Catalina Valenzuela of Santa Ana, 61, came to Mercado El Sol on Thursday at noon with her daughter, Marlin.
Wheelchair-bound, Catalina has been using the Permanent School Pantry for about eight years. Living with stage 4 renal cancer and unable to work, Catalina said in Spanish that the pantry provides her with food but also other items like diapers, towels and blankets.
It also provides a sense of community and an ability to shop for groceries, versus just being handed a bag.
“Sometimes if there’s something she’s allergic to, we distribute it to the neighbors,” Marlin Valenzuela said. “It’s kind of like a barter system throughout the community.”
Second Harvest has distributed more than 42 million total pounds of food in fiscal year 2025. In addition to the Permanent School Pantries, there are 67 after-school and summer programs and 76 Mobile School Pantries.
The Second Harvest Mobile School Pantry program turned 10 last year.
Bautista said that Mercado El Sol also partners with Food Finders, a nonprofit food recovery organization, to provide its items.
“If we run out of food, we also have personal care stuff like shampoo, detergent, dish soap,” she said. “You might not get enough produce, but you save money on this so you can get your produce. There’s always a balance of items that we provide.”
