Our Mission
Obtain nutritious food and support from public and private sources
and efficiently distribute these resources to the hungry
in Western New York through our member agencies.
The Food Bank of WNY does so much more than just feed hungry people. The Youth Center at Holy Cross Church has been receiving help from the Food Bank for 7 years. We have received a lot more than just food. They have helped us through grants that have enabled us to receive refrigerators and freezers. They have given us training on how to better serve the people who desperately need us. They have given us literally tons of food to feed people that come here from all over Buffalo to eat a hot meal. Now here is the most important thing that The Food Bank of WNY has done for Holy Cross and Youth With A Purpose; they have helped to keep children safe and alive in a dangerous City.
Both of these pictures are from our Annual Thanksgiving Celebration for the whole community. We have a small dining area but we try and accommodate as many people as possible. Each year at special events alone, we will serve over 150 people. During the week in the school year, we will serve between 35-60 children per day with a snack and a hot meal.
Many young people come to our Youth Center because we are a Relationship Center. We take the time to let young people know that they are valued and cared about. The streets of Buffalo are filled with gang recruiters so it is important to give our children a safe place where they can eat, learn and make friends.
So how does the Food Bank keep children from getting killed? In our kitchen at Holy Cross, we have only had 5 people work here in 7 years. Out of those 5 people, 3 of them have had family members who were murdered by a bullet to the head. Our address is 345 7th Street. The Buffalo News referred to 7th Street as "World War III" because of all the shooting that has taken place in the neighborhood. We have had children run into the Youth Center seeking safety as they were being chased by gang members. We have heard the sound of gunfire while we were meeting inside. The conversations at our dinner table sometimes revolve around discussions of violence that the young people have experienced. Unless you spend time on the streets of Buffalo, you would never know what our children are living through.
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| This is Silvia and Mama on the Stop The Violence Boat Ride. They both work in our kitchen at Holy Cross. Victims of violence and their families were given a night of dining and cruising in the Buffalo Harbor. Mama's father was murdered on Memorial Day weekend while he was fixing his granddaughters pink bike. Amongst our kitchen staff, a Mother lost her Son, a Sister lost her Brother, and a Daughter lost her Dad. |
The banner below says that the Food Bank is fighting hunger one day at a time. That is true but we would like to add to that. The Food Bank of WNY is saving one life at a time by helping programs like Youth With A Purpose. We lost our major funding in September of 2010. We have struggled to keep providing services to the young people who so desperately need a respite from the violence in their neighborhood. We say thank you to all of the people at the Food Bank for creating a Bright Spot. You are going way beyond the call of your mission statement, you are giving young people a chance to change the world.
Thanks for your time. Go do something nice for somebody.
"Find new ways,
in as many ways,
in more excellent ways,
on all of your days,
to show love."
Bob Kuebler
YWAP Director
Youth With A Purpose
In School & After School
In The Mountains & In The Hood
In The Mountains & In The Hood
157 Locust Street
Buffalo, New York 14204
716-830-8240
"All Children Are Gifted"
http://thebrightspotreport.blogspot.com/If you are looking for a speaker for parents or youth or both, please call us.
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