History

Thursday, 20 August 2009 06:46 Last Updated on Sunday, 15 November 2009 17:57 Written by client

The Fredericksburg Area Food Bank was incorporated in 1982 as the Fredericksburg Area Food Relief Clearinghouse. The original concept was for the organization to feed hungry families and individuals throughout Planning District 16 (the counties of Stafford, Spotsylvania, King George, Caroline and the city of Fredericksburg). The idea involved obtaining surplus food through retail and wholesale food outlets and then redistributing the food to the hungry. The first full-scale food pantry was opened at 304 George Street in Fredericksburg during the winter of 1981-1982. In the first winter of operation the facility distributed 13,000 pounds of food to the needy.

The 28 founding members of the Food Relief Clearinghouse included many of the downtown churches, social service agencies, domestic violence shelters, and community homes. In the mid-1980’s, the pantry eventually outgrew its downtown location and rented a warehouse on Little Page Street. It became affiliated with the Central Virginia Food Bank in Richmond, Virginia. This affiliation increased the variety of foods available at the clearinghouse. Further expansion occurred in 1991 when the clearinghouse once again relocated to 310 Central Road in the Fredericksburg Industrial Park.

In 1993 it was evident that the food relief clearinghouse had grown so substantially that a new warehouse was needed. The Board of Directors spearheaded a capital works project and completed a warehouse in June of 1994. The Fredericksburg Area Food Relief Clearinghouse moved into its new facility in the summer of 1994. Food distribution had increased to 500,000 pounds annually. In the spring of 1995, the Fredericksburg Area Food Relief Clearinghouse changed its name to the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank and became a certified affiliate member of Second Harvest Food Bank Network. This affiliation brought many strategic advantages to the Food Bank. The Second Harvest Food Bank Network, currently known as Feeding America, is the single largest domestic feeding organization in the United States. It is comprised of over 200 food banks and 30,000 food pantries nationwide.

With five years, the food bank had outgrown the facility at 1327 Alum Spring Road.  The board of directors purchased a larger warehouse in Spotsylvania County.  Fredericksburg Area Food Bank's warehouse is currently located at 3631 Lee Hill Drive in the Lee Hill Industrial Park. The warehouse contains 30,000 square feet of dry storage and 8,000 cubic foot of freezer and cooler space. The size of the warehouse and the affiliation with Feeding America increased tremendously the amount and variety of food now available at the food bank. 

In 2008, the Fredericksburg Area Food Bank distributed more than 3,000,000 pounds of food and other grocery products.