Venti-sized grant coming to Feeding Tampa Bay from Starbucks

TAMPA, Fla. - Gloria Nixon never thought she'd have to rely on a food bank, but times have changed.

"It's just tight," she said. "I thank God for this because when I come here, it's less I have to spend in the grocery store."

The grandmother from Temple Terrace was picking up essentials at Feeding Tampa Bay, now that her income of Social Security, and a pension, isn't cutting it, not with the cost of groceries up nationwide 11.4 percent in just a year.

Feeding Tampa Bay offers essentials for families who may be struggling.

"I thought there are people who need it more than I do," said Nixon. "So I wouldn't do it. But then things got so tight, I am thinking why not."

Feeding Tampa Bay just got a second grant of $100,000 from Starbucks to support local food banks in the 33612 zip code, the University area, where there's a lack of access to fresh food.

"Families, typically, when they're economically compromised, will buy cheaper foods that are less healthy," said Thomas Mantz of Feeding Tampa Bay. "What we want to do is focus on providing the fresh perishables that are so important to basic nutrition to folks who are otherwise saying, you know, I can't quite afford that in my monthly budget." 

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Access to fresh foods can be limited for some families.

The number of meals they are providing right now doesn't quite match what they were providing at the height of the pandemic.

They are on track to provide 85 million meals in 2023, compared to 92 million in 2022.

But they do say that it's rising once again and that a month's worth of shopping appointments are gone in just a couple of hours.

"We have folks who do not have homes, but we also have folks who have full time jobs that are just having a hard time, fitting that gap with all of the resources that they need," shared Rhonda Gindelsperger of Feeding Tampa Bay.

Feeding Tampa Bay got a second grant of $100,000 from Starbucks.

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The grants are going to support the school pantry at Woodson K-8 school and at the Trinity Cafe.

A previous grant from Starbucks helped provide nearly 80,000 meals, including to 2,400 children.

"If you have something like this that you can rely on, go for it," said Nixon. "It's a blessing we have this."

For information on how Feeding Tampa Bay click here.