Obama drops by food bank, thrilling volunteers of all ages

Surrounded by star-struck volunteers in hair nets, former President Barack Obama stopped by to lend a hand at the Greater Chicago Food Depository Tuesday morning.

Dressed all in black, with a White Sox ball cap on his head, he helped fill bags of potatoes at the facility on the city’s Southwest Side.

“Hey, how’s it going?” he called out. “This is a spiffy-looking spot right here.”

Obama, in town this week for the Obama Foundation Summit, joined some 60 volunteers packing food for distribution to the food bank’s network of 700 community sites, according to a news release.

As he worked, young, giddy volunteers sidled up to the former president. One little girl asked for a hug.

“I love hugs,” Obama said, reaching down to embrace two kids at once.

As he left, he. called out, “Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!”

The food bank serves the equivalent of about 160,000 meals daily.