Harvest Regional Food Bank, Texarkana received a grant from the Blue & You foundation, for $25,000 to support Harvest’s Mobile Pantry program. Several of the nine Arkansas counties served by Harvest are lacking in food pantries or agencies to distribute food to meet the hunger relief needs of the community.
Harvest Regional Food Bank’s Mobile Pantry program was selected out of 210 applicants to receive a $25,000 grant from Blue and You.
In 2011, Harvest established the Mobile Pantry program to provide food directly to those communities with the fewest hunger relief options. They began quarterly distributions to Lafayette and Pike Counties; over the last year added mobile pantries in Columbia, Hempstead, Howard and Sevier Counties.
“It is Harvest Regional Food Bank’s plan to expand the program to hold quarterly mobile pantries in seven of our nine Arkansas counties to increase the percentage of need met through distribution,” said Camille Wrinkle, Executive Director at Harvest. “Harvest Regional Food Bank’s mobile pantry program aims to provide over 284,000 total pounds to under served counties in southwest Arkansas in 2016.”
“Our grants this year went to programs across the state that address such issues as nutrition and exercise, dental health, and medical professional education,” said Patrick O’Sullivan, executive director of the Blue & You Foundation.
Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield established the Blue & You Foundation in 2001 as a charitable foundation to promote better health in Arkansas. This year, the Blue & You Foundation has awarded $2.9 million to 40 health improvement programs in Arkansas.
About Harvest Regional Food Bank
Harvest Regional Food Bank is the food bank serving Bowie Co Texas as well as the southwestern corner of Arkansas including Miller, Lafayette, Hempstead, Little River, Sevier, Howard, Pike, Nevada and Columbia Counties.
As a Feeding America and Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance member, our mission is to eliminate hunger in this region through food distribution and education. Formed in 1989 as a food rescue organization, Harvest Regional has grown to a full service food bank distribution center providing over 2.3 million pounds of food in 2014 to 100 partner hunger relief agencies.
Harvest Regional continues to serve as a food rescue operation, collecting excess prepared foods for local shelters and soup kitchens. Harvest Regional also operates a backpack program serving 25 campuses in 10 school districts as well as providing resources to agencies to operate backpack programs in the districts outside Texarkana. More information can be found at www.harvesttexarkana.org or by following us on Facebook at facebook.com/harvesttxk.
To donate or for more information:
PO Box 707
Texarkana, TX 75504
3120 E 19th St Texarkana, AR 71854
870-774-1398
Harvest Texarkana is a 501 (c)(3), tax exempt organization – donations are tax deductible as allowed by law.
