On Wednesday morning, August 23rd, Yolo Food Bank hosted a groundbreaking ceremony at 233 Harter Ave. in Woodland to announce to the public its plans to renovate and move into a new, state-of-the-art facility. Over 100 community members were in attendance to show their support for the local Food Bank’s upcoming expansion.
To date, the End Hunger Yolo Capital Campaign Committee has raised just over $4 million and is working hard to reach its goal of $6 million. Yolo Food Bank currently operates out of four separate buildings, in facilities that are overcrowded, outdated and insufficient for running food assistance programs and services to their fullest potential.
As the Capital Campaign rolls into the public phase, Yolo Food Bank is now reaching out to the local community to help raise the final $2 million of the campaign goal no later than March 1, 2018. It is important that the funds are raised by then to avoid delays and consequent cost increases, as well as to assure the new facility’s readiness to receive the bounty of the 2018 harvest season.
Community member contributions to the success of the End Hunger Yolo Capital Campaign will equip Yolo Food Bank with the capacity to store and distribute 8 million pounds of food per year by 2020; increase cold storage capacity by seven times; establish a commercial kitchen to turn excess and rescued produce into healthy meals. The new space will also provide facilities for unmet community needs like nutrition education, cooking classes, meal programs, job development, vocational skills training in the culinary arts, and much more.
With food insecurity remaining high throughout the country, the ability to distribute more food is critical for Food Banks. According to the USDA, more than 42 million people nationwide are food insecure, which means that they may not know where they will find their next meal. Yolo Food Bank teams with donors of food, funds and volunteer time to provide food assistance each month to over 50,000 residents (19,000 households).
“Our community in Yolo County has always been caring and generous in providing the resources for food assistance to our hungry neighbors,” said Kevin Sanchez, Executive Director of Yolo Food Bank. “We’re asking everyone to consider making a special, one-time donation apart from their regular support to help get us into our new home and make the Food Bank of the future a reality.”
For more information and to make a tax-deductible donation, please visit www.EndHungerYolo.org
