Founded in 1982, Feeding Tampa
Bay recovers surplus food from local
farmers, manufacturers, supermarkets,
and organized community food drives,
and distributes it to those in need.
Gindlesperger says they accomplish this
through direct distribution programs and
a partnership network of more than 500
community partners. Collectively, the
organization and its network distribute
4 million meals each and every month
to community members who would
otherwise go hungry.
“Feeding Tampa Bay’s mission is to
change lives one meal at a time by
leading our community in the fight against
hunger,” Gindlesperger emphasizes.
Feeding the Community
Feeding Tampa Bay offers numerous
programs to assist hungry individuals
throughout the region, including Manatee
County. “Hunger affects children in our
local schools, grandparents living on a
fixed income, veterans who have fought
for our country, and working families
who are trying hard to make ends meet
- hunger affects everyday people every
day,” says Gindlesperger.
As the needs of the community continue
to change, she says Feeding Tampa Bay’s
programs and services are also evolving.
“With many factors contributing to food
insecurity and families’ needs, our goal
is to break down barriers and increase
access to nutritious foods to ultimately
create opportunities that strengthen
everyone in the household.”
For instance, the organization offers a
Mobile Pantry Program, which delivers
perishable and non-perishable groceries
directly into areas where access to
grocery stores is low. The Early Learning
Coalition (ELC) of Manatee County
recently partnered with Feeding Tampa
Bay to provide this service to local
families. This mobile pantry is offered the
first Saturday of every month from 9:00am
to 10:30 am at the ELC, located at 600
8th Avenue West Suite 100 in Palmetto.
Families can stop by to collect one box
of free food, and there is no ID required.
More than 100 families visited the ELC’s
first ever Feeding Tampa Bay Mobile
Pantry event on February 2nd, and these
numbers continue to grow.
“Through Feeding Tampa Bay’s agency
partner network – like the Early Learning
Coalition of Manatee County - we are able
to distribute food in the neighborhoods
where people live and work,” remarks
Gindlesperger.
Feeding Tampa Bay also offers the
Feeding Minds School Pantry Program,
which houses pantries onsite in schools,
as well as its Trinity Cafe program, which
serves families a hot meal every day.
“The goal is to ensure families who are
already strained by time and money have
various options to access nutritious food
in convenient ways,” she explains. “These
direct distribution programs, among
others the organization deploys, are all
aimed to deliver healthy foods directly to
our neighbors in need.”
Additionally, Feeding Tampa Bay
recently launched a new strategic plan
entitled IMAGINE. “The organization
has a bold vision for the future and we
invite everyone to join us as we create
a hunger-free community, providing
115 million meals every year, by 2025,”
she adds. Visit FeedingTampaBay.org/
IMAGINE to learn more.
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/imagine