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Carolyn Fernandez president of Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas said she hopes for the organization to purchase the building on 11th Street to start the Market to Hope food pantry. Catholic Charities hopes the Market to Hope project will help supplement food needs in Beaumont's 77703 zip code. Photo taken Monday, 10/28/19 lessCarolyn Fernandez president of Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas said she hopes for the organization to purchase the building on 11th Street to start the Market to Hope food pantry. Catholic Charities hopes ... morePhoto: Guiseppe Barranco/The Enterprise, Photo Editor
Hunger is a constant problem for many Southeast Texans who struggle to afford food, shelter and clothing simultaneously.
Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas is trying to lessen the threat of food insecurity for people of limited ability to pay full prices for nutritious food like fresh produce and fresh fruit.
The organization wants to open a free food pantry in an area known as a “food desert,” specifically in the 77703 ZIP code, which was left without a grocery store after the 2015 opening of H-E-B’s supermarket at College and 11th streets prompted it to close its food pantry on East Lucas Drive.
In pursuit of that goal, proceeds from the 17th annual Harvest of Hope fundraiser, honoring Bishop Curtis J. Guillory of the Diocese of Beaumont, will go towards helping Catholic Charities create a food pantry for those in need. The program is called “Market to HOPE,” an acronym for “Help Other People Eat.”
It is based on the four Gospels that recount Jesus feeding the 5,000.
Carolyn Fernandez, president and chief executive of Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas, said almost a fourth of Jefferson County residents live in what she called “food insecure” homes — much more than the estimated 13% nationally who lack the money to pay for the basic necessities.
In Jefferson County, Fernandez said, 18,000 children are among the food insecure. “Market to HOPE is a grocery store-model, client-choice food pantry where individuals and families who are seeking food assistance will be able to shop and select food items most appropriate for their ethnic and cultural preferences and dietary restrictions thereby honoring each person’s dignity,” Fernandez said.
“The primary and most pressing goal of Market to HOPE is to provide supplemental food to individuals and families that will help reduce their food insecurity,” she said.
Fresh produce and fruit would come from the Southeast Texas Food Bank or directly from gardens like the Giving Field, which also supplies the food bank and the ecumenical ministry Some Other Place to use in its soup kitchen.
A food pantry could help people who receive Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to extend their benefits by conserving the value on their Lone Star EBT cards for costlier items like meat and fish.
The typical benefit for a single cardholder is $194 a month in Texas. Lone Star adds $150 for each additional person in the recipient household up to almost $1,000 per month. “If you have ever lived or witnessed the experience of not having enough money to pay for the basic necessities of life — food, shelter, and clothing — you will feel in your heart why the Market to HOPE is so important to our community,” Fernandez said.
Tracey Thompson, who is a disaster relief client of Catholic Charities, said she once shopped regularly at the H-E-B on East Lucas, but now she and many others rely on word of mouth to find churches that have temporary food pantries.
“It’s hard if you don’t have transportation,” she said.
Thompson said the 77703 ZIP code is home to many who lack transportation or access to nearby food sources.
“It really would help a lot of folks,” she said, referring to a local food pantry.
Catholic Charities is hoping to acquire a vacant building at 2050 N. 11th St., currently owned by real estate developer and manager Sam Parigi.
The non-profit originally had planned to embark on its food pantry in January 2018, but 2017’s Tropical Storm Harvey flooded those plans.
Then Imelda happened, making the need more acute. Fernandez said acquiring the building is not the immediate problem even though Parigi has a “for sale” sign in front of it.
Renovation will eat most of the Catholic Charities budget for the pantry. It has about $250,000 on hand for the project, said Karen Wortham, fundraiser co-chair.
She said she hopes the fundraiser will bring in about $500,000. Imelda also fouled plans for the event’s original venue, and pledges sent by mail might not have arrived in time, she said.
Wortham asked people who have contributed or plan to make a pledge to call (409) 924-4421 to report their status.
Information about the fund raiser also is available at that telephone number at Catholic Charities.
Dan Wallach is a freelance writer for The Enterprise.
