Utilizing drive-thru service and fewer than ten staff members/volunteers per distribution period, The Storehouse provides safe distribution of food to neighbors and continues delivery to offsite collaborations
Known for its annual Thanksgiving Turkey Drive-Thru, The Storehouse of Collin County has revised its distribution of food to neighbors via pre-packaged food bags in an outside drive-thru model to limit person-to-person contact. The current service model does not allow neighbors to enter the building or congregate together. Following CDC Mitigation Strategy, fewer than ten Storehouse staff and select volunteers work together at any time for preparation and distribution purposes.
“The drive-thru distribution is designed to help to slow the spread of the virus while continuing to get food into the hands of our neighbors and keep our volunteers and staff safe,” said Candace Winslow, executive director, The Storehouse of Collin County. “Now more than ever, our neighbors and offsite collaborators need our help, and we will continue to be there for them.”
Food Pantry distribution dates/times remain the same: Thursdays, from 4 – 6 p.m. and Saturdays, from 9 – 11 a.m. The drive-thru distribution began on Saturday, March 14, serving 111 families with eight Storehouse staff members. The number of families receiving food on March 14 was consistent with The Storehouse’s regular distribution numbers, with the addition of a few new families.
Additionally, The Storehouse is continuing to provide food to existing offsite collaborative partnerships, which include Community United Methodist Church in Copeville, Texas; Evergreen Assisted Living, serving seniors in Richardson and Plano; E3 Ministries, serving a refugee community in Dallas; and Nexus Community Church, serving economically and racially diverse residents in Northeast Dallas.
Currently, The Storehouse staff is handling the preparation and distribution tasks. The goal of The Storehouse is not to duplicate services of other agencies but rather collaborate to amplify the response to those in need.
The Storehouse serves on average 1,000 families per month in a program supported by the North Texas Food Bank, local corporations, food service partners, and thousands of volunteers. Monetary donations are requested. At this time, The Storehouse is not accepting donations of food items due to building closures. Visit https://www.thestorehousecc.org/give and select “give now” to help feed neighbors in crisis in Collin County.
“The best way to help the neighbors of The Storehouse at this time is through a monetary donation,” added Winslow. “The generosity of our donors allows us to obtain food from North Texas Food Bank and other food suppliers at a fraction of the cost of the retail price of food items. We can make $1 stretch much further through our food suppliers than our donors can at their local grocery store.”
The Storehouse of Collin County, a nonprofit organization housed within St. Andrew United Methodist Church, is the umbrella of services providing short-term assistance and long-term transformation to residents of Collin County in need: the Seven Loaves Food Pantry, serving 1,000 families a month; Joseph’s Coat Clothing Closet, providing an average of 4,000 garments each month; and Project Hope, a mentoring program supporting women in crisis. The program first began in 2009 under the name of Seven Loaves which provided only food pantry staples and grew over the years to meet a variety of needs. An estimated 130,000 people in Collin County live below the poverty level, more than half of which are children. In September 2018, The Storehouse received the North Texas Food Bank’s Partner Agency of the Year Excellence in Impact Award in recognition of its life changing services, meeting multiple needs for each family served. Visit www.thestorehousecc.org. The Storehouse EIN: 27-1883333