North Texas Food Bank Agency Partner Summit Recognitions

The North Texas Food Bank honored its leading partner organizations at the recent Partner Agency Summit, sponsored by UnitedHealthcare at the Renaissance Hotel in Richardson. Partners were honored as Impact Partners for their exceptional efforts to meet the growing demand for food assistance, the embrace of Hope for Tomorrow wraparound services, their commitment to growth and their holistic approach to supporting neighbors. Emerging partners are those who are new to NTFB and are demonstrating exceptional growth and commitment to those priorities.

Here’s a look at the partners that were recognized:

Retail Partner of the Year: Good Samaritans of Garland

Good Sams has been a long-standing NTFB partner and a retail program partner for over eight years. This past year, they’ve been a key partner in the Garland area. Not only have they helped take on additional retail partners during a time of transition, but Wendy and her team are extremely mission-driven, and they’re a joy to work with.

Emerging Retail Partner of the Year: Homeless Coalition of Dallas

Homeless Coalition of Dallas is a new agency on the retail program, and they have been an incredible partner so far. We can always count on Gwen and her team to be responsive and willing to work with our team to rescue as many retail donations in the Dallas area as possible.

Garden Partner of the Year: The Globe Life Garden at the Kitchen

The garden, along with the restaurant it supports, is a gathering place and a haven for the community. Along with using sound gardening practices and environmentally friendly crop management techniques, it is a teaching garden with a focus on nutritious, culturally relevant food. The team provides a wonderful experience for volunteers and supporters, and their gate is always open for the neighbors.

Emerging Partner Dallas County: Resource Center

Dallas Resource Center has demonstrated a strong commitment to continued growth and excellence in its willingness to offer Hope for Tomorrow wraparound services that address the underlying barriers to food security.

Emerging Partner for Dallas County: Vickery Meadows

They provide significant service to a high-need area in Dallas with an all-volunteer group that gives selflessly to fulfill the needs.

Impact Partner for Dallas County: Irving Cares

In addition to their food pantry, Irving Cares supports community members through access to financial assistance, educational programming, and employment services. We know that serving our communities well includes being connected to other services your neighbors can access. Irving Cares is expanding their impact by participating in the Irving Community Action Network. Similarly, they sit on our Agency Partner Council and provide critical feedback that has informed NTFB’s strategic and operational direction.

Emerging Partner for Rockwall County: Rockwall County Helping Hands

Although Rockwall Helping Hands has just completed their first year of partnership with NTFB, they have been serving Rockwall County for decades. While in the process of moving all their services to one campus, they have continued to distribute more food, offer educational and financial assistance, supply quality healthcare, and so much more. They are a collaborative, experienced, and neighbor-focused organization that fits well in the NTFB network.

Impact Partner Rockwall County: Our Daily Bread Royse City

When they began to notice an increased need in the community, they adapted so that they could continue to serve well. After many neighbors expressed interest in more produce, they started a produce only distribution. When a local mobile food pantry had to stop serving their community, Our Daily Bread showed up to their last distribution to make sure their neighbors knew where to go. Our Daily Bread has shown that with the right resources, organizations can be adaptable to serve our communities in a way they need us to.

Emerging Partner for Denton County: Redeemer Church of Denton

They are a new NTFB partner that sponsors a distribution in the heart of Lake Dallas. Although they are new to the scene, this organization is eager to find the best connections for their community and fill the gaps in assistance.

Impact Partner for Denton County: Heart of the City

Heart of the City Food Pantry is an organization that has grown with the need. Along with their plans to expand their client choice pantry, they have added educational programming to empower their neighbors. They are strong collaborators in the community and use those connections to support a unique model of developing local partners to serve their own neighborhoods.

Emerging Partner for Delta County: Delta Hope House

Delta Hope House played a pivotal role by helping pilot the SNAP Mobile in the county, demonstrating their commitment to innovative solutions for community support. As the only partner in Delta County, Delta Hope House’s exceptional efforts are crucial in addressing local needs and advancing our mission.

Emerging Partner for Ellis County: Helping Hands of Ennis

They have shown superior cross-county collaboration and a dedication to making sure that their neighbors are receiving all the staples of a healthy diet. Helping Hands maintains a top-tier storeroom crew, demonstrating excellence in cleanliness, organization and efficiency.

Impact Partner for Ellis County: Manna House Midlothian

They have has demonstrated both a willingness to grow and a commitment to increasing their service over the past year, taking on new retail partners and finding creative ways to get food to neighbors. They have a dedicated staff and volunteer team who help to sort incoming deliveries, stock shelves, and walk with neighbors through their client-choice pantry, educating them on healthy food options.

Impact Partner for Lamar County: Downtown Food Pantry

As a newly onboarded partner, CitySquare Paris has made a significant impact by providing meals twice a day to neighbors in Paris. Their dedication to serving the vulnerable population of unhoused neighbors is instrumental in addressing critical needs within the community.

Emerging Partner for Lamar County: CitySquare Paris

In a year filled with challenges and opportunities, Downtown Food Pantry has emerged as a beacon of hope and service, serving nearly a quarter of Lamar County residents. Not only has Downtown Food Pantry been a vital resource for those in need, but they have also played a pivotal role as the hub drop-off point for other Agency Partners.

Emerging Partner for Fannin County: Feeding Fannin—Ladonia and Bonham

Since becoming an agency partner, Feeding Fannin has reached several significant milestones, such as demonstrating their ability to effectively navigate a live distribution model and becoming an invaluable member of our Agency Partner Council for the cohort.

Impact Partner for Fannin County: McKenzie UMC Food Pantry

McKenzie UMC has distinguished itself as a pivotal partner in Fannin County through its exceptional commitment to community service. Their proactive approach to providing onsite SNAP application assistance has proven instrumental. Moreover, McKenzie UMC’s role as one of the first agency partners to pilot the SNAP Mobile at their location highlights their innovative spirit and leadership in enhancing access to essential resources.

Impact Partner for Hopkins County: Hopkins County Community Chest

Hopkins County Community Chest is comprised of staff and volunteers who know what food insecurity is like. It is this understanding that fuels a neighbor-centric approach. There is a strong commitment to humility and meeting neighbors where they are and equipping them to rise above their circumstances. Community Chest has worked hard to leverage grant funding to improve their capacity to serve neighbors.

Emerging Partner Hopkins County: Pine Forest Food Pantry

In Pine Forest’s years of partnership with NTFB, they have worked with a tightly knit group of volunteers to feed their community, focusing heavily on providing neighbors with nutritious produce. They have exhibited excellent collaboration with other Hopkins county NTFB partners, especially Fruitful Harvest and Meal A Day Sulphur Springs, who they help unload the truck with every Monday morning, rain or shine.

Impact Partner for Kaufman County: Kaufman Christian Help Center

They have demonstrated model partnership with NTFB in serving their community. Whether it is their client-choice pantry in Kaufman or their monthly mobile distributions in Kaufman and Kemp, The Center achieves the mission not providing not only food, but other wrap-around services like their financial education classes and by networking with other various non-profit organizations in Kaufman County.

Emerging Partner for Kaufman County: First Baptist Church Crandall

First Baptist Church Crandall has only been an NTFB partner for a few months, but has exemplified NTFB’s core values of integrity, compassion and collaboration in their interactions with their neighbors and NTFB staff. Always ready to greet neighbors with a smile, the staff and volunteers of First Baptist Crandall truly make their guests feel at home.  

Impact Partner for Collin County: Local Good Center

The Local Good Center focuses on serving their neighbors holistically through their top-tier wraparound services and access to empowering wellness programming. They are NTFB’s inaugural Food Pharmacy and have proven critical to the program development through their collaborative spirit. The Local Good Center’s focus on quality, not quantity, is a testament to the care and expertise they put into serving Collin County.

Emerging Partner Collin County: Hope for the Cities

Though they have only been a partner with NTFB for one year, they have already made a great impact on their community. Not only do they meet their neighbors right where they are, but they also showcase an incredible strategy to mobilize community members to serve and engage other community providers through collaboration. They are keenly aware that our neighbors need access to more than just food and use their community connections to fill those gaps.

Impact Partner for Navarro County: Compassion Corsicana

Their staff and volunteers are kind, dedicated, and driven – exemplifying their mission to show compassion to those in need. Compassion Corsicana has demonstrated a willingness to engage with and support surrounding NTFB partners by serving as a pick-up site for deliveries, and by being a ready resource for anything and everything that is asked of them.

Emerging Partner for Navarro County: Hope to Go

With a dedicated volunteer team, they are committed to building well-rounded food boxes for neighbors who pick up each week. They have demonstrated an ability to grow by serving the increasing number of rural neighbors in need and by leveraging NTFB grants to improve neighbor and volunteer experience.

Impact Partner for Hunt County: Hunt County Shared Ministries

We recognize Hunt County Shared Ministries for their exceptional achievements and forward momentum. Their recent purchase of a new building, with exciting improvements on the horizon, marks a significant milestone in their growth. Additionally, Hunt County Shared Ministries has been instrumental in their produce distribution days, ensuring the community receives fresh nutritious produce.

Emerging Partner for Grayson County: Harmony Missionary Baptist

In October 2023, Harmony Missionary Baptist successfully transitioned to a new facility, resulting in a tripling of their capacity. This significant upgrade has enabled them to expand their reach and serve a greater number of neighbors in need.

Impact Partner for Grayson County: Masterkey

Masterkey stands out for its diverse and impactful services, which span from food assistance to early childhood education and pathways to higher education. Their dedication to addressing the comprehensive needs of the community is evidenced by their remarkable achievement of serving more than 1.8 million pounds in FY24—the most in the county.

Emerging Partner – Sharing Life Partner Agency: Hope in Hand Food Pantry

Impact Partner – Sharing Life Partner Agency: Empowering the Masses

Partner of the Year – Crossroads Community Services: Honoring Voice of Hope for

Service with Dignity – Crossroads Community Services: Catholic Charities Dallas