Rolling Hope: Pittsboro DJ boosts morale with mobile canned food drive

Rolling Hope: Pittsboro DJ boosts morale with mobile canned food drive

By Lindsay Doty

Cruising from neighborhood to neighborhood, Pittsboro DJ Troy Hanna played crowd favorite tunes like “YMCA” and “Uptown Funk” from a truck flatbed trailer on April 11 as part of a mobile canned food drive and mood booster.

Families cheered and busted a move from their driveways and sidewalks while remaining socially distant.

“The support was overwhelming. People appreciated it. We needed this,” said organizer Troy Hanna, owner of T-Bone Disc Jockey in Pittsboro.

“People were so fun and dancing. In one of the neighborhoods I stopped in, we wouldn’t leave until that dad or kid that was just standing there and did the Hokey Pokey. It was hysterical.”

He got the basic idea for Rolling Hope on social media from a group in Massachusetts and took it from there.

“We are all stuck at home. Making people smile and doing good work was my thought process through this,” he said.

With the help of a small crew of volunteers, the disc jockey collected 2,000 pounds of food donations during the Pittsboro route.
People set out canned goods in bags at the end of their driveways as crews wearing gloves and masks loaded them up.

“It was amazing. We filled three pickup trucks full of canned goods,” said Hanna.

The food was donated to Pittsboro Christian Church Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana. Church leaders posted photos of the donations to its Facebook page with a big “thank you” caption.

The food donations are a great need during the coronavirus supply shortage.
Hanna says the emotional boost was also essential.

“It was also a break if you will. People were excited about something.  That was the coolest part.”

Hanna is organizing another mobile donation event.  Weather permitting, Rolling Hope Brownsburg will take place on Saturday, April 18 from 12- 5 p.m. Donations will benefit the Hendricks County Food Pantry Coalition.

Rolling Hope Brownsburg is scheduled to start in the Arbor Springs neighborhood and make his way through the following neighborhoods: Summer Ridge, Autumn Glenn, Torey Pines, and West Chase in Brownsburg.

Neighbors are encouraged to follow the Facebook event page under Rolling Hope Brownsburg for updates and weather delays.

Residents are encouraged to participate by dancing, donating, and maintaining social distancing. Donations of canned goods should be placed in bags and left at the end of the driveway.

If they don’t make it to your neighborhood, organizers say you can still donate by dropping canned goods in collection bins inside the main doors at the Calvary United Methodist Church at 575 W Northfield Drive in Brownsburg.

Rolling Hope Brownsburg: https://facebook.com/events/s/rolling-hope-brownsburg-v1/223817905373029/?ti=icl

Rolling Hope DJ Troy Hanna, Molly daughter, pumps up neighbors with music on April 11 in Pittsboro during a mobile food drive. (Photo by Eric Pritchett)