A donation of $10,000 to the Manna food bank has been earmarked for what’s feared will be a tough summer.

The Conejo Valley food bank has been getting five to six new clients every single day it’s open, said Manna director Mike Mathews.

The increased need comes from former white-collar employees, such as those let go when Amgen had layoffs a few years ago, Mathews said.

“They went through their severance pay and their savings have run out. Now they are finally at the point where they need to come to us for food,” he said.

The food bank gives each client about a week’s worth of food. Clients are allowed to come back once a month.

“We hope the food donation helps them save money so they can pay a utility bill. We hope it helps them stay in their homes,” Mathews said.

The cash donation came from the closing of the Christian Church of the Hills. After the church shut its doors in December due to economic troubles, it sold its property at 29295 Agoura Road for $1.5 million. After paying off its mortgage and other debts, church elders distributed the remaining $650,000 to 23 charities.

The donation to Manna will be used during what is traditionally a “dry spell” at the food bank, Mathews said.

“One day last summer, Manna did not have food enough to open,” he said.

People generally give donations to the food bank during the winter at holiday time, but the children who usually receive federally subsidized lunches and breakfasts at school are home and hungry during the summer.

Currently, food bank volunteers are able to fill clients’ requests.

On Sat., Feb. 27, Boy Scouts in Thousand Oaks went out in the pouring rain and collected 25,000 items for the food bank, Mathews said.

The director is also grateful for an abundance of fresh fruit from local trees that’s being delivered to Manna.

Manna’s address is 3020 Crescent Way. To contact the food bank, call (805) 497-4959 or email info@mannconejo.org. For mailing donations, the address is P.O. Box 1114, Thousand Oaks, CA 91358. For more information, go to www.mannaconejo.org.