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How does the Foodbank help feed hungry people in my county?

 
P-D Editorial: Bailing out the hungry | 09-26-08
Hard times have food pantries scrambling

By Doug Moore
ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH

September 23, 2008---David Hardge, of St. Louis, loads a pallet of food into a Foodbank truck to be delivered to one of 300 agencies Foodbank services in rural Missouri or Illinois. (Emily Rasinski/P-D)

ST. LOUIS
— When the grocery center opens at Food Outreach four days each week, the line snakes out the door.

The demand for food at the midtown nonprofit center is greater than at any time in Greg Lukeman's seven years as executive director.

"When you see the number of people coming in, it's staggering," Lukeman said. In July, a typically slow month, Food Outreach provided 35,000 meals, a 39 percent increase from a year before.

Higher gas and food prices combined with more people out of work is putting a strain on food pantries, soup kitchens and meal delivery services throughout the region and across the country.

These agencies, created to help the poor, are seeing more first-timers walk through their doors each week.

The new clients never needed a helping hand before. But with food and gas prices rising at rates much faster than cost-of-living increases, more and more families have no other choice. For some working families, a medical emergency or car repair is the tipping point that pushes them from independence to cries for help.

"These are really hard times," said Enid Borden, president and CEO of Meals on Wheels Association of America in Alexandria, Va. "I've been here 16 years and never seen it this bad. Any way you slice it, it's just a mess."

A year ago, the average price for a gallon of gas was $2.67. Today, it's $3.69. Food prices rose during the last year at a rate not seen in nearly two decades. And unemployment is at a five-year high.

Food banks serve as the distribution centers for pantries and soup kitchens, the often small storefront spots in neighborhoods where families can come for free food.

At the St. Louis Area Foodbank, which provides food to 500 agencies in 14 counties in Missouri and 12 counties in Illinois, increased demand and costs have combined for a wallop.  Click here to read the rest on STLtoday.com | PDF

P-D Editorial: Bailing out the hungry | 09-26-08
RELATED VIDEO:  Local Charities See Increase in Economic DownturnWed., Sept. 25, 2008 | CW 11 News

La'Roi Glover and Chris Long, along with their fellow St. Louis Rams teammates will be on hand to greet and serve guests at the 6th annual St. Louis Rams' Taste of the NFL.

Taste of the NFL is a food and wine tasting extravaganza in which attendees are able to sample specialty foods prepared some of the best restaurants and clubs and throughout the community, bid on unique items, and meet the chefs and Rams’ players. More >


St. Louis Area Foodbank Food Fair program featured in Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest) Agency Spotlight for August 2008.  Click here to read.

Disaster Relief
The St. Louis Area Foodbank has been working with our network of 500 community-based agencies in ongoing disaster relief due to the recent flooding in the bi-state area.  So far this week we've:
 
· Held a Food Fair in St. Charles County helping more than 200 families in need.  Click here to learn what a Food Fair actually is.
· On Thursday we joined forces with the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) and delivered a truckload of Gatorade and Bananas to relief efforts in Winfield, MO.
· Also on Thursday we delivered much-needed food to Wentzville, MO, St. Charles, MO, and Alton, IL.
· And, as always, we're continuing to provide food for non-disaster related hunger relief throughout our entire service territory.

Thank you for your past, present, and future support.  It helps alleviate the crisis of hunger on a daily basis and further enables us to help in times of even greater need such as now.


St. Louis Area Foodbank receives coveted 4-star rating from America's largest charity evaluator for 4th consecutive year.  Only 5% of charities evaluated throughout the country have received top ranking 4 consecutive years.  More > 


How does the St. Louis Area Foodbank help those in need in my county?

Missouri Counties:  Crawford; Franklin; Gasconade; Iron; Jefferson; Lincoln; Montgomery; Pike; St. Charles; St. Francois; St. Louis City; St. Louis County; Warren; Washington

Illinois Counties:  Calhoun; Clinton; Franklin; Jackson; Jersey; Madison; Monroe; Perry; Randolph; St. Clair; Washington; Williamson

Our mission to feed hungry people includes people in all 26 of those counties.  For a listing of the counties served, please see below.  To see how much was distributed in each respective county in 2007, please click here.

To see how much has been distributed in each County during the first Quarters of 2008, click here.

St. Louis Area Foodbank opens recently acquired state-of-the-art food distribution center on National Hunger Awareness Day

 

 


 

St. Louis (June 05, 2007) -- The St. Louis Area Foodbank recently acquired a 92,000-square-foot facility near the Earth City Business Park and will open food distribution to its 500+ food pantries, soup kitchens, and shelters on National Hunger Awareness Day – Tuesday, June 5, 2007.

In honor of the their longstanding partnership with the St. Louis Area Foodbank, the first items distributed from the new facility were picked up by the St. Nicholas Food Pantry which serves St. Louis City and Lutheran Child & Family Services of Illinois/Hardin Food Pantry.  Both agencies have partnered with the Foodbank for more than 20 consecutive years.  More >



NEWS BITES


 

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Does your company have food to donate for those in need?  Please contact:
Lenora Young
314.292.5395
lyoung@stlfoodbank.org 

Protecting food donors
Read about the The Federal Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act which provides protection for food donors.

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