The Community Food Bank located at 1201 E. Commerce Street on the eastern edge of Fairfield has worked long and hard to raise money to build its new facility to better accomplish its mission of providing food to the many hungry people across Freestone County and surrounding areas.
Since August 2018, clients have been able to drive by the new warehouse portion and receive their food but the reception area/lobby is an empty shell, waiting for funds for its completion.
“Friends of the Food Bank”, a group of volunteers who help with food distribution, is announcing a fundraising campaign to raise money for completion of the lobby and much needed parking lot repairs.
The campaign will culminate in the Country Fair, scheduled for Saturday, September 14, 10 am to 4 pm.
  There will be entertainment, a colossal bake sale, craft and vendor booths, concessions, activities for all ages, stage shows and much more.  facebook.com/Country-Fair-for-Food-Bank
When completed, the Food Bank lobby will be used for clients to come in and get food items.
Pastor Robert P. Smith states: “It will be a place where we can talk privately with them about their needs and challenges in a comfortable setting.
In addition to food, we’ll be able to give them hope by providing access to other resources.”
In addition to the people who come to the Food Bank for food/necessities, a courier delivery is provided once a month to home-bound senior citizens.
Over the past three years, this ministry has grown from 35 to 90+ folks in Freestone County blessed by these deliveries each month. “We’re realizing that more people need the Food Bank’s services; therefore, it’s imperative the lobby be completed,” says Liz Thornton, one of the Food Bank’s loyal volunteers.
The Community Food Bank has grown from a neighborhood food pantry (3,500 square feet) to a 7,500 square foot facility that includes a warehouse, allowing it to serve as a hub for food distribution.
It’s currently open Tuesdays and Thursdays, 10 am – 12:30 pm. Food has made its way into the cupboards of people who are unemployed, on a fixed income, with disabilities as well as the working poor, children and senior citizens in Freestone County.
Also, fresh produce and other food products are distributed through Giveaways in several other communities and college campuses.
There are no income requirements and these events don’t take away from the income-eligible participants going to the Food Bank.
In 2018, the Community Food Bank fed approximately 82,000 people and distributed 3.5 million pounds of food. Each month more than 2,000 people are fed in Freestone County and 4,000 more across central Texas.