As a young, single-parent mother living paycheck to paycheck, I was always seeking sustainable ways to manage my household and create a better life for my child. That’s why I was so thrilled to learn about the new programs, initiatives, and expanded services of the Greater Cleveland Food Bank, especially in the Collinwood area where the organization is headquartered and where I used to live. The services offered by the food bank today, especially the soon-to-open community resource center, would have made a tremendous difference in my life and my daughter’s life.
The food bank is reimagining their approach to serving families and individuals with the goal of eliminating food insecurity in Northeast Ohio. In 2018, they created a two-phase plan to respond to rising needs. First, they opened a new distribution facility that would allow them to serve more families, and second, they turned their existing headquarters into a wraparound community resource center. Both sites are in the Collinwood area and will increase the food bank’s capacity to eradicate food insecurity throughout the neighborhood and Northeast Ohio. In 2022, the expanded food distribution center opened at 13815 Coit Road, while the Collinwood Community Resource Center is expected to open at 15500 S. Waterloo Road later this year.
The Greater Cleveland Food Bank has a long history of addressing food insecurity in Northeast Ohio. Tiffany Scruggs, vice president of community access and executive director of the community resource center, is one of many within the food bank who are working to develop solutions to eliminate food insecurity. Scruggs shared how the food bank is transforming lives throughout Northeast Ohio and the overall impact the expansion and services will have on the Collinwood community.
“The community resource center brings hope to the communities we serve,” she said.
Changing lives by addressing hunger and social barriers
The food bank was started in 1979 to address hunger in the Cleveland area. During its first year, the organization distributed over 400,000 pounds of food. In 1984, the founders secured a new location on E. 27th St. Currently, the food bank serves more than 300,000 families a year and distributes more than 50 million pounds of food per year across six counties (Ashland, Ashtabula, Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, and Richland). According to the food bank’s website, one in seven adults and one in five children face hunger, and the organization is trying to meet that growing need.
After several mergers and partnerships, moves, an expansion, a growing staff and a name change, the food bank expanded its services during the pandemic and moved to its current location on Coit Road, located on land gifted by Vic DiGeronimo, a member of the food bank’s board and of local development company DiGeronimo Companies. That led to the reimagining of the South Waterloo site as a community resource center. The food bank’s new expanded location in Collinwood will serve over 700 partner institutions across its six-county service area.
When it opens, the Community Resource Center will be the heartbeat of the food bank as it will support individuals and families with one-stop social services. The food bank’s 2023–25 strategic plan comprises three goals: “To end hunger today, tomorrow, and for a lifetime.” The community resource center helps achieve the third part of that goal. When barriers such as poor education, lack of quality health care, poor housing conditions, and unemployment are addressed there are greater opportunities for a self-sustaining quality of life that impacts generations.
A one-stop-shop to end food insecurity
Scruggs said the goal is to help residents address the underlying causes of food insecurity by putting various services under one roof. This means that unlike my experiences as a single parent having to travel to various locations to seek support, individuals and families will be able to go to one location to meet their needs. In order to create a dignified shopping experience, the resource center will have a “free food market,” Scruggs told The Land. “Neighbors can come and actually pick the food items that are desirable based on cultural needs, dietary needs, or their just overall household needs.” Having that access will help them develop a more self-sufficient lifestyle.
In addition to the free food market, Scruggs said the community resource center will house at least 14 nonprofit organizations providing employment services; legal aid; healthcare; education; job training; free clothes, shoes and school supplies for children (through Shoes and Clothes for Kids); and other services (check out the full list here). The resource center will also include a computer lab, a teaching kitchen, literacy center for young children, and a play room area. It will serve around 30,000 people annually, Scruggs said.
The food bank’s one-stop model mirrors a national trend of trying to address the root causes of poverty under one roof. As one example, Scruggs cited the employment services that will be available. “We understand that many of our neighbors are employed, but they’re underemployed, so they might not have enough income to sustain and provide for their families,” she said. “So, we’ll have different career-based organizations on site who can help our neighbors to establish and achieve a higher income so that they can no longer be eligible for food in the long run.”
My mother, a 53-year resident of the Collinwood community and a long-time recipient of the food services, attended the opening of the food pantry on Coit Road. Overall, she is pleased with the changes happening in the Collinwood community.
Community partners have already started moving into the resource center, with a ribbon cutting celebration slated for Wednesday, November 1. The center will officially open the free food market to the community on Thursday, November 2 from 4–7 pm. The center will be in full operation by early spring 2024 with hours of operation determined at a later date.
Like my mother and her neighbors in Collinwood, I am excited and hopeful about the Greater Cleveland Food Bank’s transformation, reimagining, and repurposing of their services to eliminate food insecurity in Northeast Ohio.
Learn more about the Greater Cleveland Food Bank on its website. The food distribution center is located at 13815 Coit Road. Its hours for receiving food are Monday–Friday 5 a.m.–1:30 p.m., and its hours for dropping off donations are Monday–Friday 8:30 a.m.–3:30 p.m. The Collinwood Community Resource Center is expected to open at 15500 S. Waterloo Rd. later this year. For general inquiries, call the food bank at 216-738-2265, and to get assistance applying for public benefits, call the Help Center at 216-738-2067, or fill out the form at the bottom of the page.
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