ROCKDALE, Texas (KRHD) — Rockdale Full Gospel's food pantry is seeing an increase in turnout to its Monday giveaways ahead of summer.
- Rockdale Full Gospel opened its food pantry in March, giving away free fresh foods.
- Founder of non-profit Valley of Hope Mina Davis says turnout has increased about 173 percent from March to April.
- Now, with school out and summer in full swing, they're expecting more demand for their services.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Every Monday, people line up with their bags at the Rockdale Full Gospel church's food pantry.
But there are always new faces showing up like Amelia Lara who's there to get food for herself and her grandkids.
"I'm about to have eight grandbabies… For my grand babies or anybody that come to my house, I feed them," she said.
The church is expecting even more people this summer.
Community Health Worker Mina Davis tells me they just had a 173% increase from March to April.
"Yes, I would say that as we head into the fall, there's a lot more of an increase," Davis said.
In the summer, kids lose access to school meals, falling back on low-income families
"It is very, very, prohibitive for a lot of folks here… They might not get the fresh items they need or they might not have the ability to get things within a reasonable price for their dietary needs," she said.
That's why Mina's making sure they have enough supply.
"I'm traveling to San Antonio, for example, to purchase produce wholesale… I've asked some local donation partners and along with applying for grants, we've been able to purchase food. We do get some items from the salvage store," she said.
"They help me a little bit. Food would help me. If anybody want to come to my house where I'm at, they can come," Lara said.
