Stories of Hunger

Mary and Alex

Mary and Alex came to our first ever Veterans Pantry Day, where they left with food and hope for the future!

Alex served in the Army from 1965 to 1971, and now he frequents the VA for medical appointments to take care of his health. He and his wife, Mary, were among the many guests who visited our inaugural Veterans Pantry Day, a designated pantry day for veterans every month.

“I heard about the food pantry at an appointment at the VA,” Alex said. “It’s helpful for me and my wife because we are on a limited income. My daughter and granddaughter are staying with us. My daughter has cancer and I have cancer, plus I’m on dialysis, so this really helps us.”

Alex was pleasantly surprised by the selection of food available at the pantry. He said, ”I’m excited about everything I got today, because I didn’t know they had all of this. You see the same thing here you would see in the grocery store.”

As the cook of the family, Mary was also thrilled at being able to “shop” for foods that met her family’s dietary needs. She said, “We try to eat all healthy foods.
This is very helpful for us because we’ll have a little more money in our pockets to buy other essential things. Now we are going to be okay for a while.”

Even though this was his first time getting food assistance, Alex said he will come back, and encourages others in need to turn to the Houston Food Bank.
“I would tell others to come if they need the help because they’re hurting themselves by not coming. If you’re in need, it’s not a time for you to have pride. It’s time for you to step up for your family and do what you can. And to the people who help us, I would say a big old thank you and bless you!”

We want to share our heartfelt gratitude to the many veterans, like Alex, who proudly served our country. It is thanks to generous friends like you who support initiatives such as our Veterans Pantry Day, that we are able to serve those veterans in our community who now need us.