East Bay food bank gets big boost from Stephen and Ayesha Curry foundation
OAKLAND -- Food banks across the Bay Area are feeding higher numbers of people this year but fundraising hasn't kept pace.
That reality holds true for the Alameda County Community Food Bank. Their fundraising is down about 30 percent year-over-year.
"Like many food banks right now, we've seen a decline in fundraising because a lot of people feel like the pandemic is over," said Regi Young, the executive director of the Alameda County Community Food Bank. "The pandemic is over in some ways but the remnants and the impact of the pandemic ... are still really relevant right now."
Young says one in four residents of Alameda County is experiencing food insecurity. The food bank is providing about a million meals a week. Their pre-pandemic budget for the year was $14 million. This holiday season, they need to raise a total of $14 million.
"Food insecurity is a major issue right now," Young said. The fact that one-in-four people are struggling with some form of food insecurity is really unacceptable to us."
Entering the home stretch of the holiday season, the Alameda County Community Food Bank is revving up their offense in the fight against hunger and, on Saturday, they got a major assist.
"One of the great foundations of our region, Stephen and Ayesha Curry's Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation, has decided they will match dollar-for-dollar -- up to $250,000 -- any donations that come to our food bank, up until December 31st. This is huge news for us," he said.
Young says they have a goal to raise $4 million between now and Dec. 31.
"Not only is it critical for the holidays but it also gives us a jump-start for the rest of the year, as well -- particularly in January and February, where fundraising goes down dramatically," he said.
With the help from the Curry's Eat. Learn. Play. Foundation match, Young feels optimistic the community will come through so the food bank can continue to help provide a helping hand to those who need it.
"I think that these types of opportunities bring our community together," he said. "What we've seen over the years is that this is a community in the East Bay and the Bay Area as a whole that really cares."