Dallas, July 24, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) announced today that Crossroads Community Services has been selected to operate its Pollock Campus on Cockrell Hill Road starting in 2019. The new space offers an additional 45,000 sq. ft. for Crossroads operations, allowing the organization to better serve more people facing food insecurity in Dallas County.  This comes as NTFB is in the final stages of planning the move of their volunteer and distribution operations to their new Perot Family Campus in Plano. 

“The Food Bank is working to increase our capacity to serve a diverse 13-county service area,” said Trisha Cunningham, President and CEO of North Texas Food Bank. “Moving to our Perot Family Campus places us in a central location, and we wanted to ensure that our facility on Cockrell Hill Road would continue to serve as a food distribution point for our neighbors in need. As one of our most trusted partners, and the pioneer of the ‘hub and spoke’ distribution model, Crossroads Community Services is uniquely qualified to carry on our legacy of service at the Pollock Campus.”

Crossroads plans to be fully operational at NTFB's Pollock Campus distribution center by early 2019. The ‘hub’ organization will provide food to ‘spokes’ which include nearby NTFB Partner Agencies and Crossroads existing Community Distribution Partners (CDPs). In addition to food distribution to Agencies and CDPs, Crossroads will operate a new client-choice pantry at the facility. The organization is focused on providing clients with substantial amounts of healthful food, guided by the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Until Crossroads occupies the facility, NTFB will continue to distribute food to those nearby Partner Agencies from the Pollock Campus.

This move will allow each organization to expand their services to meet the hunger needs in North Texas. In 2015, NTFB launched a 10-year strategic plan to fill the current hunger gap in North Texas. Community engagement and network expansion are two key pillars of the Food Bank’s plan, which includes the move to Plano as well as critical investments to the infrastructure of select partners.

 “Collaboration is one of the Food Bank’s key values, and this is embodied by this innovative partnership with Crossroads,” said Anurag Jain, Board Chair for North Texas Food Bank. “The strength of the NTFB Feeding Network will be the key to filling the hunger gap and providing 92 million meals by 2025. Working alongside Crossroads Community Services will enable the Food Bank to better serve the more than 800,000 individuals in our community who face hunger.”

By partnering with other organizations within the Dallas community, Crossroads has been able to provide more food to more people in a more efficient manner. In 2017, Crossroads partnered with 64 Community Distribution Partners to provide 2.3 million pounds of nutritious food to residents of Dallas County.

“Words cannot fully express our deep appreciation for the support provided by North Texas Food Bank,” said Rev. Jay Cole, Crossroads Executive Director. “With the Pollock Campus, we can now serve NTFB Agencies, more CDPs and significantly expand our wraparound services.  Thanks to NTFB, we can do even more to nourish more people and power more change, because no one, especially children, should experience the physical and emotional impact of missing multiple meals.”

About the North Texas Food Bank

The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) is a top-ranked nonprofit hunger-relief organization, serving 13 counties. The Food Bank’s administrative headquarters is located in the Dallas Farmers Market, and its new distribution and volunteer center – the Perot Family Campus – is set to open in Collin County in the late summer of 2018. Each day, NTFB provides access to more than 190,000 meals for hungry children, seniors, and families through a network of more than 1,000 programs and more than 200 Partner Agencies. In fiscal year 2017, NTFB provided access to almost 70 million nutritious meals. While the NTFB is making steady progress toward closing the hunger gap, much work remains to be done to reach the organization's 10- year goal of providing 92 million nutritious meals annually by 2025. www.ntfb.org

About Crossroads Community Services

Crossroads Community Services has focused on nourishing people and powering change since opening in 2001. This has been accomplished through the distribution of substantial amounts of nutritious food, using Crossroads’ innovative Hub-and-Spoke distribution network of 60+ Community Distribution Partners throughout Dallas County. In addition, Crossroads collects longitudinal geospatial data about their clients’ health, emotional well-being, and levels of food insecurity for academic research partners and policy makers.  After distributing the groceries for individuals and families to prepare 1.9 million wholesome meals in 2017, Crossroads is working to provide enough for two million nutritious meals in 2018. Crossroads Community Services is a proud member of the North Texas Food Bank feeding network. www.ccsdallas.org