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Food bank partner Jubilee Housing has continued to serve children throughout the pandemic, providing hot meals and snacks to keep kids healthy and energized year round. Their programs engage children in experiential learning opportunities in science, engineering, art, and math, as well as civic engagement. Just as importantly, the program provides a deep sense of community that extends beyond its building walls.

As a 35-year hospitality professional who grew up in food and beverage, Elaine Richard already had great respect for the work of food bank. When she was asked to join the board of directors, she jumped at the opportunity. At the time, she didn’t realize that her purpose in supporting the food bank would change in a matter of weeks as the COVID-19 pandemic created unprecedented challenges.

For Audrey Walker, the Director of Youth Services at Jubilee Housing, summer isn’t just for vacation – it’s for community. Her summer is packed full of cohorts of kids and their families. Jubilee’s youth programs provide kids with experiential learning like field trips, practice in science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM), and opportunities for community service and civic engagement. But even more importantly, it provides hot meals and snacks to keep kids healthy and energized throughout the summer and beyond.

Twice weekly, the Capital Christian Fellowship (CCF) opens its doors to feed their Maryland community. In addition to the variety of services the church provides, the CCF partners with the food bank to stock their in-house food pantry with fresh produce and staple ingredients. The food bank spoke to Executive Pastor Akeia Rossiter about how the Fellowship adapted to the challenges of the pandemic, kept its doors open, and served more families than ever before.

For over 30 years, a local nonprofit and Capital Area Food Bank partner, Food For All has been working to deliver groceries to those in need across the DC region. Like so many food bank partners, they’ve seen the need for emergency food skyrocket in the DC community over this last year of the pandemic. In just a matter of months, Food For All went from serving 140 households per week to serving over 3,4000 households per week.

It was a big year at the food bank. As we wave goodbye to 2019, here’s a look back at some of the top media stories we had the opportunity to be a part of this year.

From getting ready to distribute thousands of pounds of turkey and other holiday food staples for families to being part of food drives across the region, excitement is in the air as the food bank prepares for the season of gathering and giving.