DURHAM, N.C. – Inter-Faith Food Shuttle is opening its new Child Food Hub, a 7,000 sq. ft. facility that will lead the way in fighting childhood hunger in the Greater Triangle. The Child Food Hub will be officially opened on September 27, 2018 at 10 a.m. with a dedication ceremony led by Dave Koch, President/CEO of Inter-Faith Food Shuttle, and Steve Schewel, Mayor of Durham. The new warehouse is located at 2436 S. Miami Blvd., Ste. 200-9, Durham, N.C. 27703.
The Child Food Hub will house Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s child hunger programs, specifically BackPack Buddies and School Pantries, as well as partner, PORCH-Durham. In the next five years, the new space will grow BackPack Buddies by more than 50% and increase School Pantries by 44%. Currently, the Food Shuttle delivers nearly 2,500 BackPack Buddies each week and supports 25 pantries. The warehouse will immediately boost those outputs by 300 additional bags per week and two additional school pantries by the end of the school year.
“If there is one thing we can all agree on it’s that child hunger is unacceptable,” says Dave Koch, Food Shuttle President/CEO “The new Child Food Hub represents our commitment to feed as many children as possible. With the recent start of another school year, we need to do all that we can to let children know that we are here for them, with the resources they need to succeed.”
One in five children are hungry across North Carolina and more than 118,000 in the Food Shuttle’s seven-county service apply for free and reduced-price lunch. This new warehouse is a long-term commitment from the Food Shuttle and PORCH-Durham to fight against child hunger as Raleigh, Durham, and surrounding communities experience rapid growth.
The dedication on September 27 will include tours of the new warehouse and a ribbon-cutting ceremony. It will also kick off the 2019 Band Together partnership, which has a goal of raising more than one million dollars to support the expansion of Food Shuttle child hunger programs. Tours and a light breakfast start at 10 a.m. with a ceremony following at 10:30 a.m.
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Inter-Faith Food Shuttle pioneers innovative, transformative solutions designed to end hunger in our community. As a member of Feeding America, the Food Shuttle distributes nearly 6 million pounds of food per year, 40% of which is fresh produce. From BackPack Buddies and School Pantries; Community Health Education and Mobile Markets; Catering and Culinary Job Training; and Urban Gardening and a 10-Acre Farm; we go directly to the point of need to empower people. We feed, teach and grow to create a healthy and hunger-free North Carolina.
PORCH-Durham is a local, grassroots 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization serving Durham County, North Carolina. Once a month neighbors and businesses collect non-perishable food items for the BackPack Buddies and School Pantry programs in Durham Public Schools. In addition, PORCH-Durham partners with local organizations to make sure community pantries are well stocked and that no Durham families go hungry. Since PORCH-Durham began 8 years ago, over 280,000 pounds of food has been collected. For more information, visit durham.porchcommunities.org and follow us on social media - Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.