KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Food deserts throughout the Kansas City metro area have left one group hungry for change. After months of hard work, Evangel Spiritual Temple is seeing the fruits of their labor.
"Being able to feed people that are less fortunate and just giving them some hope in hopeless situations," said Ronnetta Grayson, Manna From Heaven Food Pantry director.
Monday, the food pantry opened its doors in south Kansas City, Missouri. An urban area known to be a food desert.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines a food desert as urban neighborhoods and rural towns without ready access to fresh, healthy, and affordable food. Instead of supermarkets and grocery stores, these communities may have no food access or are served only by fast food restaurants and convenience stores that offer few healthy, affordable food options.
Armond McDonald with the pantry said they are one of the only pantries in the neighborhood.
"It's slim, it's slim to none here. There were a few in here years ago and then they just shut down one by one," said Armond McDonald, Garden Steward at Manna From Heaven Food Pantry.
Through donations and volunteers, the shelves at the pantry are stocked with everything from fresh fruits and produce, meat and everything in between.
McDonald believes the new pantry will grow to serve more than 200 families each week.
"We'll pick it out for them, the bags are already premade, so everyone will be able to get something and based off of their family size," said Grayson.
Manna From Heaven Food Pantry is open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Monday's, Wednesday's and Friday's. It is located at 8526 Wayne Avenue in Kansas City, Missouri.
