Pleasant Grove Food Pantry History

The PGFP is a non-profit organization that provides food and other necessities to qualified residents of Pleasant Grove and the surrounding areas.

As a Partner Agency of the North Texas Food Bank, we have access to resources, experience, and guidance. North Texas Food Bank consistently ranks among the top 10 food banks in America. This partnership also provides PGFP with the leverage to turn every dollar donated into three nutritious meals. We are an All-Volunteer agency; no amount paid for wages or salary.

On our first day of operation on May 11, 2010, we provided 486 pounds of food in pre-packed boxes for 14 families, and that has dramatically increased in the past nine years. Over those nine years, we provided food for 52,953 families with 190,372 family members (including 77,841 children). So far, 2,052,526 pounds of food has been distributed. In 2019 we regularly provide food for as many as 180 families every Tuesday with pounds ranging from 6,000-8,500.

In Oct. 2011, we became a client choice pantry. Instead of packing boxes ahead of time, we now award each family shopping points based on family size at the beginning of each month. Those points are used by the clients to 'shop' for their food from our grocery shelves. Fresh produce is provided weekly by Our Saviour Community Garden and North Texas Food Bank. Points are not needed to get produce.

We expanded our storage space in July 2011, July 2012, and June 2015 to accommodate the increased number of families seeking our assistance. We also obtained a box truck in the fall of 2015 to transport larger orders of food to the pantry for stocking and distribution, again due to increased numbers of families seeking help.

An Outreach Specialist from North Texas Food Bank is on hand every week to help clients apply for SNAP (food stamps) and other programs. Vendors from the community also set up tables with information about Medicaid and Medicare plans, Dental services, Vision Services, Employment opportunities, Community Events, and Free Spay/Neuter clinics. Usually, they provide handouts and a free gift (like toilet paper, toothbrushes, toothpaste, detergent, bath soap, etc.) Through our community network, we make referrals for those needs we cannot address.

In April 2012 the Pleasant Grove Food Pantry received the Diversity Award from the North Texas Food Bank' Dishing Out Gratitude' Event. In April 2018 our Board President and Pantry Coordinator was awarded 'Community Leader of the Year' by the Southeast Dallas Chamber of Commerce.

Hunger is a pervasive problem in our community.

40% of families within a 1 mile of PGFP had household incomes of $25,000 or less.

1 in 4 children in our community is food insecure, meaning they may go hungry.

Food insecure children are sick more often and more likely to suffer developmental delays.

66% of our households are forced to choose between paying for food and paying for medical care.

About 20% of our families are considered homeless (some live in tents, some in cars or vans, some sleep wherever they can).

With your help, we can change all that and end hunger in our community. Please help us to help those hungry families by becoming a PGFP sponsor today. It only takes a little to make a HUGE DIFFERENCE. $10 will provide 30 or more meals, that's' 3 meals a day for ten days for one person. Likewise, a $30 donation will provide 90 or more meals, that's three meals a day for a month for one person. Please donate what you can from your heart; no one wants to go hungry, especially an innocent child. You could host a food drive or volunteer at the pantry. Any help is much appreciated.