On Wednesday, May 29, Houston Food Bank welcomed Bill Ludwig, regional administrator for the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) Southwest Region for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for a visit aimed to enhance disaster-relief efforts and improve ways to provide critical food assistance to those served by Houston Food Bank.
Ludwig’s visit reinforces the importance of federal and local partnerships in times of crisis. Also in attendance from the USDA were Darrell Allen, SWRO regional disaster coordinator; and Edgar Curtis, Texas state WIC program director.
Ludwig and his team met with Brian Greene, president/CEO of Houston Food Bank, and several food bank team members to gain insight and firsthand knowledge into the challenges faced during the recent disasters, and to understand the immediate needs of the community. Food bank team members included Nicole Lander, chief impact Officer; Carolina Cano, government relations manager; and Pearl Cajoles, director of Marketing and Communications.
As a disaster-relief organization, Houston Food Bank collaborates with its member agencies and other local organizations and entities to efficiently provide food and other essentials to residents in need. With Ludwig’s support, Houston Food Bank has received approval to operate the USDA’s Disaster Household Distribution (DHD) program which ensures that impacted households receive pre-packaged boxes of nutritious, shelf-stable food sourced from existing inventories of USDA-purchased foods. This emergency measure allows Houston Food Bank to provide these necessities to its network of community partners located directly in impacted neighborhoods.
Including the floods that affected areas north of Houston in early May and the derecho storm on May 16, Houston Food Bank has distributed 1,051 pallets of disaster-relief deliveries, including 1,409,264 pounds of food.
“Houston Food Bank provides assistance during times of hardship, including disaster recovery, and we could not do it without the support of government entities such as USDA,” says Greene. “Mr. Ludwig’s request to visit Houston Food Bank to gain firsthand knowledge not only reinforces the importance of federal and local partnerships in times of crisis but speaks to their commitment to help serve the community especially in a time of crisis.
“Houston Food Bank is currently supporting relief efforts across the Greater Houston and outlying areas impacted by major storms that have happened over the last several weeks,” says Greene. “Our team is working hard to provide food and emergency supplies to our network of community partners, which is also supported by our donors and volunteers. Teamwork is critical at this time as the need is great.”
