Starting 2026 with the desire to give back, more than 40 dedicated U-Haul volunteers joined several other organizations to help pack emergency food boxes for their neighbors in need at St. Mary’s Food Bank in Phoenix.
U-Haul International, headquartered in Midtown Phoenix since 1967, has been a longstanding supporter of St. Mary’s mission to bridge the gap for Arizona communities with nourishment for today and hope for tomorrow.
Team U-Haul offered its Saturday morning on Jan. 31 to pack 5,040 food kits, contributing to the more than 110,000 boxes made each month at the food bank.
The nonprofit’s new volunteer complex provides a welcoming, upbeat environment to pack food boxes efficiently for families, children and seniors facing food insecurity.
“Watching U-Haul come together for hands-on volunteering with St. Mary’s Food Bank highlighted how our company works best — busy assembly lines, upbeat music, and everyone working shoulder-to-shoulder,” noted Konrad Pilatowicz, Director of Regulatory and Risk for U-Haul Legal.
“Knowing we helped assemble more than 5,000 food boxes for local families made it even better.”
St. Mary’s reaches at-risk populations across 76,000 square miles in Arizona and feeds more than 250,000 people daily.
In addition to partnering with St. Mary’s, U-Haul supports other charities that help vulnerable populations meet their most basic human needs: food, clothing and shelter. This is because U-Haul considers affordable and accessible residential mobility to be a basic need in the U.S. and Canada — one the DIY moving and self-storage leader has been addressing since 1945 when it was founded by a WWII Navy veteran and his wife.
“Volunteering at St. Mary’s Food Bank felt incredibly rewarding because I knew my time was directly helping families in my own community,” stated Marta Quiban, U-Haul Marketing account executive. “I left feeling fulfilled, grateful for the opportunity to serve, and inspired to continue giving back.”
Read more about our partnership and volunteer work with St. Mary’s by clicking here.
