Amid high demand for food assistance and low supply levels looming into the summer, the Tarrant Area Food Bank tapped Spanish-speaking churches for help.
Tarrant Area Food Bank partnered with Radio Luz, a faith-based radio station in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, to host the Unidos en la M铆ss铆on luncheon. The partners invited 90 pastors to discuss how churches and the food bank can work together to address food insecurity among communities surrounding Spanish-speaking churches.
The event comes at a time when Texas leads the nation in food insecurity, according to Feeding America鈥檚 study. The data shows 1 in 5 Latinos experience food insecurity. Over a third of Tarrant County residents are Latino, according to U.S. Census .
The study could be 鈥渦nderestimating the true need鈥� for food, because the biannual study uses data from 2022, said Jared Williams, vice president of government and external relations for the food bank.
鈥淭hat doesn鈥檛 really give us a point in time right now,鈥� Williams said. 鈥淭he demand could be higher than that.
The food bank is experiencing a food deficit and has been warning people it may not have enough supplies to feed families in need over the summer. Rising living costs and are factors to consider, said Tarrant Area Food Bank CEO Julie Butner.
鈥淧eople are coming to us. They鈥檙e employed, they鈥檙e working, but they can鈥檛 afford the rent. They can鈥檛 afford the food costs. They can鈥檛 afford child care costs. It鈥檚 just really shocking,鈥� Butner said.
Congregants in Spanish-speaking churches could also play a part in the solution, said Yary Sidney with Radio Luz.
Hispanic congregations can be a source of food donations or financial support. Ministry groups can also donate their time by volunteering at the food bank, she said.
Martha Diaz is a pastor at Iglesia Pentecostes Valor y Fe in east Fort Worth and has lived in the area for 40 years.
Diaz said she attended Monday鈥檚 event to reunite with other Hispanic pastors in Fort Worth and to learn how her church can be a place that offers healthy food options to those in need.
鈥淚 think it would be a blessing for those in my community,鈥� Diaz said. 鈥淚t would be very beneficial to them (congregants) if they involved themselves in receiving these benefits as well as helping others鈥�
Marissa Greene is a Report for America corps member, covering faith for the Fort Worth Report. You can contact her at marissa.greene@fortworthreport.org or . At the Fort Worth Report, news decisions are made independently of our board members and financial supporters. Read more about our editorial independence policy .
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