New ETFB Resource Center to help Smith County residents in need

TYLER — The East Texas Food Bank has a new resource center opening later this month that they say will allow them to serve more people than ever. According to our news partner KETK, they plan to serve 500 families per week and provide 756,000 meals each year with the new Tyler Resource Center at Robertson Road. The Tyler Resource Center will include a “Healthy Food Pantry” as well as access to other services to help families reach self-sufficiency. Other services include health screenings, rental assistance and help with SNAP benefits. “It’s just really all of the type of services that are available in the community,” East Texas Food Bank CEO David Emerson said. “We’re able to bring them here because we’re going to have 500 families every week showing up to get services and so they’re going to be able to learn about these other services. And we can then cooperate with those other partner agencies to get them everything, hopefully, that they need.”

This is their third resource center, with the other two already standing in Lufkin and Longview.

“Every day we encounter new neighbors who have never stepped foot into a pantry asking for assistance,” said Kim Morris, ETFB Chief Impact Officer. “We want East Texans to know that we are here for you and want to be a resource for food as well as other services.”

The Tyler Resource Center is located in close proximity to neighborhoods where census data shows 34% of the population lives below the poverty line.

“The food pantry is meant to serve households at or below the emergency food income guidelines,” said Morris. “For example, a family of four would qualify to receive food if they make less than $55,500 per year. Other people who qualify to receive assistance are those experiencing a crisis such as a house fire, tornado, or extreme medical bills.”

The new resource center along with other infrastructure is part of a $7 million investment, with funding coming from philanthropist Mackenzie Scott and the American Rescue Plan Act. In addition, organizations and businesses like the United Way of Smith County, Women’s Fund of Smith County, TransCanada USA Services, Inc., and Episcopal Health Foundation and Southside Bank helped.

The resource center is set to open on Dec. 19.