DALLAS (1080 KRLD)- The North Texas Food Bank has received a donation of more than 20 tons of food from the Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints. A semi-truck carrying 41,000 pounds of food arrived at the food bank's warehouse in Plano Wednesday morning from Salt Lake City.
"We just appreciate the opportunity to be able to work in the community with partners like the food bank, and the support we give each other," says the church's Ron Johnson. "We're able to step in and try to help bridge the gap for our members as well as help in the community."
The truck carried "shelf stable" items like pasta, canned soup and fruit, powdered milk and peanut butter. The truck delivered about one ton each of beef stew, chili, and pork and beans. The shipment also delivered 2,900 pounds of flour, 2,240 pounds of macaroni and 3,600 pounds of spaghetti.
The North Texas Food Bank says it distributes an average of one million pounds of food each week. In one week after the COVID-19 pandemic put so many people out of work, the food bank distributed 2.6 million pounds of food.
"That just shows the uptick in need," says the North Texas Food Bank's Anna Kurian. "We've been really transforming the way we operate. We've turned our warehouse into, really, a 24 hour operation."
The Texas National Guard had helped the food bank at mobile pantries at Fair Park and other locations across North Texas, where lines of people have been able to pull up and receive boxes of food. Kurian says the National Guard is still helping but had to cut back.
"They were pulled away to support with the civil unrest that was happening in town," she says. "It was definitely a stretch for us. We had our staff members out there."
She says demand is always strong on food banks, but donations and partnerships with outside organizations like the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints can help meet people's needs.
The North Texas Food Bank says it will provide 77 million meals across 13 counties this year but expects that number to grow to 92 million by 2025.