Our warmest THANKS to all those who participated in the Grand Opening of our 16,800 square feet warehouse and office space this past Tuesday. This addition will provide us nearly 30,000 square feet of warehouse and office space to service over 50,000 County residents facing food insecurity.
We are asking for your continued support in “The Fight to End Hunger in Galveston County” by logging on to www.galvestoncountyfoodbank.org to make a donation, to volunteer, and to learn more about Galveston County Food Bank.
TOGETHER, WE CAN MAKE A MEANINGFUL DIFFERENCE!
In a study done by Feeding America in 2014, Galveston County showed almost 18% or well over 53,000 people were* food insecure. In 2009 23.0% or 1,676,740 children in Texas were food insecure; 284,000 of them are from Harris County and over 12,000 live in Galveston County. The consequences and costs of food insecurity for all ages make addressing the issue an economic and social imperative. In particular, inadequate nutrition can permanently alter children’s brain architecture and stunt their intellectual capacity, affecting children’s learning, social interaction and productivity.
While charitable assistance plays a critical role in helping families meet their food needs, federal nutrition programs are the first line of defense against hunger. Some families in need of public support, however, face challenges maintaining consistent enrollment while others may not even qualify for federal assistance. One in five food-insecure children lives in a home that is likely ineligible for these important programs, underscoring the critical role of both the public and private sector in addressing child food insecurity.
Together, these programs weave a comprehensive nutritional safety net that reaches children where they live, learn and play. Through collaborative effort’s between the Feeding America network of food banks and partner agencies, policymakers, business leaders, community activists, and concerned citizens, every child in America could receive the nutrition they need.
The role of the Galveston County Food Bank is to feed hungry people. Currently, we distribute about 7.3 million pounds of food each year. This mission has become critical to food distribution in Galveston County. One of the greatest challenges facing economically disadvantaged people is accessing and purchasing nutritional food.
*Food insecurity refers to USDA’s measure of lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members and limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods. Food-insecure households are not necessarily food insecure all the time. Food insecurity may reflect a household’s need to make trade-offs between important basic needs, such as housing or medical bills, and purchasing nutritionally adequate foods.
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