By Diane Weber, American Red Cross volunteer

Papa John’s delivers. By the thousands, in partnership with the American Red Cross.

Management of the well-known pizza company, with locations around the world, doesn’t neglect hungry folks right here in the United States who have been through a disaster.

In three days of active operations in the south Florida area, Papa John’s turned out more than 10,000 personal pizzas that were packed in insulated bags for the Red Cross to deliver to shelters and hard-hit neighborhoods. 

“Our mobile kitchen is able to provide 400 personal-sized pizzas per hour or 100 larger pizzas per hour,” said Don Seebold, director of Papa John’s nontraditional operations.  

The Papa John’s-Red Cross partnership was forged in the wake of another mega-storm, Superstorm Sandy, that ravaged coastal New Jersey and New York in 2012.

Veteran Red Crosser Mitch Henry from Long Beach, Cal., – who is in Florida for the current hurricane relief operation – remembers how it happened.

“I was the kitchen site manager in New York when I got a call from a local Papa John’s manager offering several hundred pizzas,” Henry said. “I explained the procedures he’d have to go through to become an official partner. But I also told him where he could set up and that the Red Cross could supply all the water he needed at his distribution.” 

The impromptu pizza party was a success, and a few days later Henry received a phone call from the founder of Papa John’s himself, John Schnatter. 

“I like what you’re doing there,” Schnatter said. "Papa” told Henry he’d like to donate $1 million to the Red Cross. Henry didn’t hesitate to put the executive in touch with Red Cross leadership to make that possible.

Ten years and many disasters later, the partnership is still strong.

“We just want to help,” said Seebold, who dispatches the mobile kitchen from the Papa John’s home office in Louisville, Ky. 

Henry agreed. “Helping these people is what it’s all about.” 

American Red Cross relief is free to anyone with disaster-caused needs, thanks to the generosity of the American people. If you would like to support the Hurricane Ian response financially, visit redcross.org, text the words IAN to 90999 to make a $10 donation, or call 1-800-HELP NOW.