The facility will reportedly offer services including benefits assistance, nutrition education and workforce training programs as well as food distribution.
WACO, Texas — Editor’s note: The video above originally aired at a previous date.
The Central Texas Food Bank (CTFB) has officially broken ground on its newest facility, meant to serve thousands in the Heart of Texas.
On Tuesday, March 4, the CTFB held a groundbreaking ceremony to mark the beginning of construction on a new facility in Waco, which they say will serve as a community resource for families throughout the region.
The facility will reportedly offer services including benefits assistance, nutrition education and workforce training programs, and will increase food distribution with a warehouse, volunteer sort room and commercial production kitchen, CTFB said.
The 64,000 square foot facility will be located at 1402 Gholson Road in Waco, and will serve as a northern territory distribution center, serving areas much further north than its main headquarters in Austin, the organization said.
The new Waco Facility will reportedly house a state-of-the-art commercial kitchen for hot meal preparation for afterschool meals for children and culinary training programs for workforce development; an on-site pantry giving those in need immediate access to nutritious food; a community garden and a warehouse for rapid food inspection, sorting and distribution.
CTFB said its research has shown that nine of its northern counties, Bell, Coryell, Falls, Freestone, Lampasas, Limestone, Mills, McLennan and San Saba, face a nearly 20% food insecurity rate, and said more than 157,000 people in the Heart of Texas Region struggle to find their next meal.
“In Waco and nearby communities, food insecurity is growing,” said Sari M. Vatske, CTFB President and CEO. “Rising costs, limited resources and a lack of nearby facilities are leaving families, older adults, veterans and children without the nutritious meals they need to thrive. We anticipate the food insecurity numbers in the nine-county area to increase by 11% in this coming year, highlighting the urgency to expand services.“
The CTFB says it is the largest hunger relief organization in Central Texas and is the only Feeding America food bank in the region. The organization says its work is made possible through the support of its partners and donors like the Applied Materials Foundation.
“The Applied Materials Foundation recognizes the vital importance of the Central Texas Food Bank in helping local families have access to the food they need,” said Katie Ferrick, Executive Director of the Applied Materials Foundation. “We’re proud to support the food bank’s new facility and enable greater efficiency to serve an increasing number of families requiring food assistance in the community.”
More information can be found on the Central Texas Food Bank website at this link.
发表回复