SAN ANTONIO -- Fort Sam Houston donated 320 pounds of food and personal hygiene products to a local food pantry July 29 as part of the Feds Feed Families campaign.
Feds Feed Families is a government-wide effort led by the Chief Human Capital Officers Council, in partnership with the Office of Personnel Management, the Department of Defense and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Fort Sam Houston chose to donate the food and other items collected in July to the Ella Austin Community Center emergency food pantry.
“We are sensitive to the fact that Fort Sam Houston is in a neighborhood that needs our help,” said Deborah Seabron, FSH Feds Feed Families coordinator.
Seabron contacted the United Way to find out where the nearest food pantry was located. The Ella Austin Community Center is about a mile away from Fort Sam Houston and serves the local community.
“We want to thank Fort Sam Houston for the food that you provided which will go to families who need assistance in keeping their cupboards full,” said Anthony Hargrove, the center’s executive director.
“Ella Austin is a multi-social service agency,” explained Hargrove. “The services we provide range from early child development, youth development programs, assistance to families, senior nutrition programs and senior activities.”
The community center’s emergency food pantry serves an average of 40 to 50 families per week, said Lucy Pantoje, director of social services for the center.
“We have more demand from families requesting emergency food assistance,” Pantoje said. “The need is growing, with the way the economy is right now,” she explained. “The families that we serve are the working poor and those who are undergoing an immediate crisis.
“We service the elderly and disabled who have a limited amount of income,” Pantoje said.
“This food really acts as a safety net for the families in this community,” Hargrove said.
“It is so heartbreaking to find out about a need too late, knowing that you could have done something to help,” Seabron said. “The Feds Feed Families campaign is a ‘real-time’ opportunity, because we found out about a need in our community and we are actively doing something about it.
“The Feds Feed Families campaign has joined the ‘desire to help’ with an immediate ‘need for help,’” Seabron said.
The emergency food pantry at the Ella Austin Community Center was almost depleted when FSH’s donations arrived last week. The donations provided helped 10 families in need.
“We did make a difference for those families,” Seabron said.
“It is getting harder and harder for families to meet their basic needs,” Pantoje said.
“During the summer there is more of a need because children are home, not in school,” said Veronica Gonzales, another social worker at the center.
“The goal for August is simple " we need to far surpass the donations of July,” Seabron said.
“Last month, we only had two weeks to gather food donations before the reporting date of July 27 and we gathered 320 pounds of non-perishable food nd personal hygiene items.
“I know we will collect much more over the next four weeks.”
There are drop-off sites located at the exit doors of the Fort Sam Houston Commissary and the first floor of the 502nd MSG Headquarters, Building 122 on Stanley Road.
Organizations interested in participating in the Feds Feed Families campaign " which ends Aug. 31 " can visit the website at http://www.fedsfeedfamilies.gov or call (210) 295-1098 for more information.
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