Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana receives 40,000-pound donation

CADDO PARISH, La. (KTAL/KMSS) – The Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana received a generous donation on Tuesday that will feed thousands of people.

40,000 pounds of food, valued at around $70,000, was given to the Food Bank by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.

Martha Marak, the Food Bank’s executive director, says the canned and dry goods come at a wonderful time.

“With the changes to the SNAP Program some folks are already starting to see some of their benefits have been cut. And so they turn to us to make ends meet,” she said. “We lost funding in the beginning of the year in February, so this really does help us. Plus we are seeing more of our neighbors come to the Food Bank to receive assistance. So this helps us and helps us reach more people that need food.”

Marak says the massive donation will allow the Food Bank to help new faces and those who rely on the Food Bank regularly.

“We’ve always helped our senior in our community. They really struggle,” she said. “A lot of our seniors have worked their whole life and have just found that their Social Security isn’t enough to live on. Grocery prices continue to rise. Medications are very expensive, so their dollar just doesn’t go as long and as far as it used to.”

She says the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has made numerous donations to the Food Bank over the span of several years.

The Food Bank provides food to approximately 65,000 people annually.

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