COMSTOCK PARK, Mich., September 15, 2023 — Feeding America West Michigan is changing its distribution process to better meet the need for food in Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties. On December 1, 2023, Feeding America West Michigan will close its Benton Harbor branch and begin serving these counties from its Comstock Park facility.
Feeding America West Michigan will be transitioning to a local delivery model for their food pantry, meal programs and other agency partners. This change is intended to improve access to a wide variety of food for agency partners to serve neighbors in need. Although the Benton Harbor facility will close, there will be dedicated driving staff and agency partner representation that will continue to support the food bank’s partners in Southwest Michigan.
Feeding America West Michigan has successfully used this model in other regions over the past several years and will leverage this experience in Southwest Michigan. The food bank has utilized a direct delivery method in the Upper Peninsula since 2016, which resulted in a significant increase in the amount of food distributed to the region.
“I am very grateful for our partnerships in Southwest Michigan and look forward to continuing to work together to ensure that anyone who needs food assistance has access to safe and healthy food,” said Feeding America West Michigan’s President and CEO, Kenneth Estelle. “I truly believe this change will improve our service in Southwest Michigan.”
About Feeding America West Michigan
Serving local families in need since 1981, Feeding America West Michigan reclaims millions of meals’ worth of safe, surplus food from various sources. With the help of countless volunteers, the food bank sorts, stores and distributes this food through a network of hundreds of hunger-relief partners to fill neighbors’ plates instead of landfills. The food bank’s service area consists of 40 of Michigan’s 83 counties from the Indiana border north through the Upper Peninsula. For more information, visit FeedWM.org or call 616-784-3250.
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