Indianapolis Urban League to cut ribbon on new food pantry
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — The Indianapolis Urban League will open the doors of its new food pantry on Wednesday, creating a reliable resource for nutritious food.
IUL program participants will have access to protein, produce, and dairy every Wednesday as a Health and Wellness program. The food pantry is a partnership between IUL, Gleaners, Kroger, Roche Diagnostics North America, and Second Helpings.
Organizers expect to provide food items for 576 families, impacting 2,304 adults and children every year.
The Indianapolis Urban League says 22% of the population it serves does not have access to reliable transportation, lives at or below the national poverty level, and lives in a food desert.
“IUL never thought it would become involved in addressing food insecurities. In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, we expected to operate the service for a few months or as long as the community needed the resources due to job loss and lack of employment from the pandemic. We hosted our first drive-thru food and meal distribution in April 2020. Honoring our commitment and the uptick of food insecurity due to inflation, we have continued working with Gleaners, Kroger, Roche, and Second Helpings for three years,” Tony Mason, president and CEO of the Indianapolis Urban League, said.
The Indianapolis Urban League will cut the ribbon on the pantry today at 2:00 p.m. Complimentary parking is available in the Indianapolis Urban League parking lot.
IUL is one of 90 affiliates of the National Urban League. Annually, the IUL provides direct services and advocacy in the areas of education and youth services, economic and workforce development, health and quality of life, civic engagement and leadership, and civil rights and racial justice empowerment.