Helping Hands

After Ita's Food Truck was totaled in a highway crash, friends created a GoFundMe campaign.

When Kristina Melendez-Thompson posted to Facebook last Saturday afternoon, she was full of gratitude. She thanked a list of strangers, friends and first responders, and wrote that she was “lucky and blessed to be alive.”

Melendez-Thompson survived a highway crash in her Puerto Rican food truck and walked away with only minor injuries. The vehicle itself, which rolled twice after a tire suddenly blew, was totaled, leaving its contents in disrepair.

Shortly after the crash, a family friend created a GoFundMe campaign to help Melendez-Thompson rebuild the family business. As of Thursday evening, donations reached more than $6,000.

Ita’s, a cheerful-looking truck covered in a rainbow of tropical-style flowers, could be found at events and festivals, plus breweries, business parks and farmers markets. The menu features meat and vegan empanadas, fried plantains and the vegetarian rice dish arroz con gandules.

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