"We were encouraged and excited by Chevron's initiative and interest in how this land could be a conduit for change rather than simply a retail pad site, how it could take on a new life to help fellow Texans and how it could take our partnership to the next level," said Amy Ragan, chief development officer for the Houston Food Bank, in the release. "As we learned during the pandemic, food wasn't so much the issue as was space for sorting, storing and distributing it. Chevron saw the need and potential and wanted to be the spark."
The video above is from a previous July 2021 report.
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The organization has seen its highest levels of demand yet in the past few years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, natural disasters and inflation. Officials said from March 2020 and March 2021, household food demand increased by 85%.
During this time, the Houston Food Bank took on additional temporary warehouse space to help meet local needs. The Chevron donation will allow the organization to expand its reach and serve more individuals and families.
Eimear Bonner serves as president of the Chevron Technical Center and as a board member for the Houston Food Bank. Bonner said Chevron is proud to play a part in the expansion to benefit the community.
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"The Houston Food Bank is doing incredible work helping our community thrive and prosper," Bonner said in a statement. "Today, with Chevron's donation of 53 acres of land, the food bank can accelerate plans to build its new distribution center helping to provide new services, recruit more volunteers and distribute food more equitably."
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Chevron has partnered with the Houston Food Bank since the aftermath of Hurricane Ike in 2008 when the region's food security needs were highlighted. Chevron invested more than $500,000 in Houston Food Bank programming in 2021 and 2022 and has contributed more than 12,000 volunteer hours since 2018.
This article comes from our ABC13 partners at Community Impact Newspapers.