TYLER, Texas (KLTV) – One in five East Texans faces food insecurity, often unsure where their next meal will come from.
That reality is why the Church of Latter-day Saints and Just Serve partnered with America 250 to donate 40,000-pounds of food.
This donation will help the food bank keep serving families across its 26-county coverage area.
Similar donations are being made to 250 food banks across the United States.
“This is just a tremendous impact on our neighbors,” said David Emerson, CEO of the East Texas Food Bank.
Emerson said the shipment will translate into roughly 30,000 meals distributed throughout East Texas.
“30,000 meals is a significant number, and that’s what this is going to provide today,” he said. “It is really going to help people throughout our 26 counties.”
Gary Riding, speaking on behalf of the church, said the timing of the delivery was intentional.
“The timing of this delivery relative to America’s 250th anniversary is just perfect,” Riding said.
U.S. Rep. Nathaniel Moran, R-Texas, also attended and praised the donation as an example of service.
“Acts of service are what this country was founded upon,” Moran said. “We need to learn to give those blessings away and to serve our neighbor — and by the way, our neighbor is everyone.”
Organizers said the broader America 250 initiative is on pace to become the largest volunteer effort in U.S. history, with the East Texas donation among the projects underway this year.
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