After taking the oath of office on Monday, Gov. Spencer Cox, Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, Attorney General Derek Brown and others came together Tuesday afternoon to serve at the Utah Food Bank.
While sorting apples, Cox told the Deseret News, “This is just who we are. This is what we do, and it’s important that we don’t lose it. All of the good things we accomplish in government is because this stuff happens. If this stuff stops happening, then government is broken, and our society is broken. We need to get back to community building.”
Many of the same state leaders will take part in a public swearing in ceremony at 11 a.m. on Wednesday at the Eccles Theater.
With a population of roughly 3.5 million in the state, the Utah Food Bank reported that 415,000 people face hunger, and 1 in 6 Utah children are at risk of missing a meal every day.
With the statistics in mind, the service activity coincided with the Cox administration’s renewed focus on service. The event brought together around 125 Utahns, 9,000 pounds of boxed or canned food and 27,000 apples.