This morning the Salvation Army gave its volunteers practice running its emergency disaster canteen.
Volunteers set the canteen up before 7 a.m. this morning in the parking lot of Coffee Bunker, a resource center for veterans seeking support.
Students handed out coffee and donuts to veterans and anyone else who approached. Coffee Bunker has a variety of veteran clients, including some experiencing homelessness.
Samantha Knappen, special events manager for the Salvation Army, said as well as honoring veterans the event was an opportunity for those who run the canteen to train for times of crisis.
“This canteen has been all over the southern part of the United States. When there was all the flooding in Houston, the canteen was deployed for three months, I believe,” said Knappen.
In August 2017, Hurricane Harvey dumped an estimated five trillion gallons of rain on Houston.
Knappen said everything distributed by the Salvation Army is donated.
“Everyone comes to the Salvation Army with the donations they can provide. If we have the volunteers, if we have the truck, the food is coming from other resources. We can meet in the middle.”