East Texas Food Bank to Hold Special Distributions This Week To Help East Texans Impacted By Power Outages

The East Texas Food Bank (ETFB) will distribute fresh produce and emergency food boxes at multiple locations in East Texas this week to assist East Texans impacted by the power outages.

Last week’s severe weather storm caused widespread power outages and damage, with several East Texas counties being part of the state’s disaster declaration.

“Many of our neighbors are having to throw away all of their refrigerated food after being without power for days, and with so many people struggling, we knew we needed to help,” said Dennis Cullinane, CEO of the East Texas Food Bank.

The emergency boxes contain shelf-stable food including cans of food and personal hygiene items.

H-E-B Bringing Food to East Texas

H-E-B, based in San Antonio, plans to bring a trailer to East Texas this week loaded with dry goods to help in ETFB’s relief effort.

“We are so grateful that H-E-B is providing us with thousands of meals to help so many East Texans impacted by these storms,” said Cullinane. “We will distribute this food as soon as it comes into our warehouse through our mobile pantries and pantry partners.”

“H-E-B is glad we are able to work with the East Texas Food Bank to help support the communities and neighbors displaced by the storms,” said Danny Flores, H-E-B Public Affairs.

Distribution Locations

Tuesday, June 20, 10-11:30 a.m. at the Gladewater Rodeo Arena- U.S. Hwy 80

Wednesday, June 21, 10-11:30 a.m. in Quitman at the Bud Moody Stadium on Bud Morris Ave.

Wednesday, June 21, 4-5:30 p.m. in Mt. Vernon at Sacred Heart Catholic Church located at 406 Hwy 37

Thursday, June 22, 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. in Avinger at Lake O’ the Pines Baptist Church at 9046 FM 729

Friday, June 23, 9 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. in Longview at the Gregg County Fairgrounds (Enter from Cotton St.)

The distributions are open to the public while supplies last. No ID or paperwork is required.

East Texas Food Bank Announces David Emerson as new Chief Executive Officer

The East Texas Food Bank (ETFB) announced today that David Emerson has been named the new Chief Executive Officer.

“We are pleased that David will become our sixth CEO in our 35 year history,” said Jeff Johnston, chair of the ETFB board. “We wanted someone who understands food banking and his previous non-profit experience in the Dallas-Ft. Worth area will be a great benefit to this organization.”

Emerson has more than 20 years of senior leadership experience and most recently served as the Executive Director of the Midwest Food Bank.

“I have a heart for feeding the community,” said Emerson. “I grew up in southern Arkansas and saw the need. I have a desire to continue the mission of the East Texas Food Bank and to address food insecurity in this region and especially in the rural communities. I hope to continue providing healthy and nutritious food and more produce to our neighbors. It’s also important to build on the partnerships we have with agencies.”

Emerson helped to restart operations for the Midwest Food Bank in Texas, increased revenue from $9 million to $25 million and grew the operations from 40 agency partners to 100 in Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas.Emerson also has extensive non-profit experience with the American Red Cross in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree from Henderson State University in Arkansas and a Master of Arts degree from Columbia International University in South Carolina.

Current ETFB CEO Dennis Cullinane will retire at the end of June after 13 years with the food bank.

East Texas Food Bank receives donation to help with summer food program

Thirty-eight thousand pounds of mixed goods will be delivered to The East Texas Food Bank, located at 3201 Robertson Road on Thursday, June 1 at 9 a.m. The 25 pallets of food weighing more than 38,000 pounds are being donated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to help aid those families who suffer from food insecurity over the summer months.

The East Texas Food Bank has a 26-county service area and aids several smaller banks throughout the region. This donation will be a great asset to communities throughout East Texas trying to feed children while school is out.

In addition to this donation, the Church also regularly supports the ongoing mobile distributions through JustServe.org. The Church posts volunteer opportunities for the community in partnership with the bank to gather volunteers to pass food out to residents across East Texas. Members and missionaries of the Church are part of the core group of regular volunteers for the mobile distribution effort.

“We are committed to easing the burden of food insecurity across East Texas,” says President Charles Rhodus, who leads the Tyler Texas Stake of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. “In following Christ’s example of Jesus Christ in caring for those in need we are grateful for the opportunity to help our neighbors.”

The donation from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is part of its ongoing global effort to care for the hungry. The Church is committed to serving smaller, rural communities that may have difficulty getting food due to employment issues, inflation, and high cost of childcare.

This donation to East Texas Food Bank will help aid those in need of basic necessities. The donation of mixed canned and boxed goods will include vegetables, chili, fruit, beef, peanut butter, dried milk, as well as numerous other items.

“We are so thankful for this generous donation from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,” said Dennis Cullinane, CEO of the East Texas Food Bank. “We continue to see an increased need for food due to inflation and the end of extra pandemic SNAP benefits in Texas. This food will go a long way in helping us feed our neighbors.”

In May this year, the Church donated 38,000 pounds of food to Titus County Cares, in Mt. Pleasant, TX and in March donated to Food Bank of Northwest Louisiana. In 2020, the Church approved more than 100 relief projects in more than 50 countries to help with pandemic relief. Most of these humanitarian projects are done with trusted partners, such as The East Texas Food Bank, which allows the Church to use its resources in places where they can do the most good. The Church also made a sizeable food donation after the severe winter storms.

The East Texas Food Bank was selected based on its connection with the community, ongoing relief efforts, fantastic leadership, organized processes, and adequate unloading equipment. Because 25 pallets of food are scheduled for delivery on a 53-foot trailer, the selected site also needed space to store all of the goods. In addition, it was important for the Church to select a food bank that also serves smaller food banks without high charges or delivery fees.

East Texas Food Bank Announces the Retirement of CEO Dennis Cullinane

The East Texas Food Bank (ETFB) announced today that the Chief Executive Officer Dennis Cullinane is retiring at the end of the ETFB’s fiscal year on June 30, 2023.

“The ETFB board is very thankful for the 13 years of service Dennis has provided,” said Jeff Johnston, chair of the ETFB board. “During his tenure, ETFB doubled its meal distribution where today we are providing 27 million meals to 117,300 households in 26 counties in East Texas. He led us through the pandemic where ETFB saw tremendous need with long lines of people seeking food assistance, some for the first time.”

Cullinane served as Board Chair of Feeding Texas and Board Chair of the Collaborative for Fresh Produce among many other community and national boards and committees. Under his leadership, ETFB was recognized as Non-Profit of the Year by the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce and twice by the Better Business Bureau.

“It has been my honor and privilege to serve as the CEO of such an incredible organization since 2010,” said Dennis Cullinane, CEO of ETFB. “I am proud of the impact we have had in East Texas. My goal has been to close the meal gap and ETFB has a strong strategic plan to expand our programs and services so we can meet this goal by 2025. I am excited to have opened our first branch in Lufkin in 2021 with three more opening this year in Tyler, Longview and Texarkana. I am thankful for all of the relationships and partnerships we have built and know ETFB will continue to thrive with the strong team that we have built.”

The ETFB Board of Directors formed a search committee and hired a firm to help identify and recruit qualified candidates for the CEO position.

“The new CEO will start in June so he has an opportunity to train with Dennis before his departure,” said Johnston