Austin, TX, October 4, 2016 –The Central Texas Food Bank has received a $15,907 grant from Caterpillar’s philanthropic organization, the Caterpillar Foundation, to provide food to individuals facing hunger in McLennan County. A member of the Feeding America network, the Central Texas Food Bank is one of 34 food banks nationwide to receive this grant.
"Hunger is an issue in every community. We are thankful to the Caterpillar Foundation for its commitment to fighting hunger and supporting children and families in need in McLennan County,” said Hank Perret, President and CEO of the Central Texas Food Bank. “With this grant we’ll be able to provide more than 63,000 meals to our neighbors facing hunger.”
Each year, 42 million people in the United States struggle with food insecurity, including more than 48,000 McLennan County residents - nearly 17,000 of them kids 18 and younger. The Central Texas Food Bank has served McLennan County since the early 1990s and provides food to more than 22,000 individuals each month through its 30 Partner Agencies and programs there. In 2015, the Food Bank distributed more than 4.3 million pounds of food to McLennan County.
The Caterpillar Foundation grant will be used to help provide food to McLennan County residents through the Food Bank’s mobile food pantries, which provide Central Texans in need with basic staples, fruits and vegetables, and frozen foods. By taking food directly to clients, the mobile food pantries fill geographic and service gaps in emergency food assistance in areas where local food assistance services cannot keep up with demand. In 2015, the Food Bank’s mobile food pantries distributed over 2.73 million pounds of food to more than 188,000 Central Texans in the organization’s 21-county service area.
“The Caterpillar Foundation is committed to alleviating poverty in the communities in which we live and work. We are proud to partner with the Central Texas Food Bank to support our neighbors in McLennan County who may not know where their next meal will come from,” said Michele Sullivan, president of the Caterpillar Foundation.
The Caterpillar Foundation’s national investment will help 300,000 people facing hunger in Caterpillar communities in 44 counties. Caterpillar Foundation has helped provide more than 5 million meals to Caterpillar communities since 2015.
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ABOUT THE CENTRAL TEXAS FOOD BANK
The mission of Central Texas Food Bank is to nourish hungry people and lead the community in ending hunger. Founded in 1981, the Food Bank provides food and grocery products through a network of nearly 300 Partner Agencies and nutrition programs, serving nearly 46,000 people every week. Headquartered in Austin, the Food Bank serves 21 counties in Central Texas, an area about twice the size of Massachusetts. For more information on the Food Bank and its programs, visitcentraltexasfoodbank.org.
ABOUT THE CATERPILLAR FOUNDATION
Founded in 1952, Caterpillar's philanthropic organization, the Caterpillar Foundation has contributed more than $650 million to help make sustainable progress possible around the world by providing program support in the areas of environmental sustainability, access to education and basic human needs. To learn more about the global impact of the Caterpillar Foundation, please visit www.togetherstronger.com.
