The North Texas Food Bank Unveils Our Community Pantry

The Food Bank's pantry will provide accessible, nutritious food to South Dallas neighbors in need

Dallas, Texas - September 11, 2014 The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) today announced the grand opening of Our Community Pantry, a new food pantry modeled on a grocery store, in the heart of South Dallas and adjacent to St. Philip's School & Community Center. NTFB held the grand opening today in recognition of our national day of service and to officially kick off Hunger Action Month.  

Importantly, Our Community Pantry will be a test lab, allowing NTFB to observe best practices that may serve as a model for other pantries and the Food Bank's Partner Agencies.  Critical initial funding was provided by the Clements Foundation, which made the dream of building a neighborhood food pantry a reality.

"Our Community Pantry is a unique opportunity to transform a building in a high needs neighborhood for a higher purpose -- providing residents with a grocery shopping experience that includes healthy items and fresh produce modeled on  a traditional supermarket," said Jan Pruitt, President and CEO of the North Texas Food Bank.  "We selected this neighborhood and space to house Our Community Pantry because the project has the potential to revitalize the surrounding area, serving as a catalyst for positive change." 

Our Community Pantry was made possible through joint efforts from several organizations and individuals who played a key role in revitalizing the building that houses Our Community Pantry. In The City For Good, developed a plan and secured the resources to turn the abandoned building into a food pantry. In The City For Good acquired funding from several organizations including The Hoblitzelle Foundation, The Meadows Foundation, The Simmons Foundation, the Lear Corporation, and Our King of Glory Lutheran Church in Dallas. 

Trammell Crow Company and its consultants provided pro bono services for this project, and the general contractor, Fast Trak, generously provided construction services at a reduced rate. Design and function were influenced by Kroger and its design engineers who provided expertise and insights  to retrofit the space from a former liquor store into a functional food pantry. 

"The North Texas Food Bank is incredibly thankful for the support of the corporations and community members that banded together to make Our Community Pantry a reality," said Pruitt added. "Many hours went into the planning of this pantry, and we applied the best practices we learned from our many Partner Agencies into the finished product."

Our Community Pantry is located at 1502 Pennsylvania Avenue Dallas TX 75215, and will serve residents from the 75203, 75210 and 75215 zip codes.  The Our Community Pantry hours of operation are Monday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and Tuesday and Thursday from 2-6 p.m. NTFB set a goal of distributing more than 25,000 pounds of food to more than 240 families through Our Community Pantry.

ABOUT THE NORTH TEXAS FOOD BANK:
The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) is a top-ranked nonprofit relief organization, and the largest North Texas charity. Each day, the North Texas Food Bank provides access to 170,000 meals for hungry children, seniors and families through a network of more than 1,000 feeding programs and 262 Partner Agencies. In fiscal year 2014, NTFB provided access to some 62 million meals. NTFB recently has announced a 10-year vision to eliminate the hunger gap in its 13-county service area. NTFB is a member of Feeding America, a national hunger relief organization.  

For additional information about NTFB please visit ntfb.org 

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