On this episode of Meet Houston Missions, Paul Cannon, talks with Quincy Collins, founder of Families Helping Families. In 2013, Quincy and some friends helped out one family within his church that was struggling at Thanksgiving. From this a vision was born with the goal of feeding as many families in need in the Greater Houston area. What started out as a few friends and a genuine compassion for their fellow man has grown exponentially today into a full-blown non-profit organization that provides a weeks-worth of food to thousands of people in need each year in the week leading up to Thanksgiving. The goal for 2024 is to feed 3,000 families.
What Families Helping Families Provides
Families Helping Families Sort box provides families in need with 10 pounds of chicken, ground beef, hotdogs, and the makings for a turkey dinner. It amounts to one week of groceries for a family in need. Families are sourced through local school systems, city health services, and law enforcement who identify the families in need. Each family is given a set time slot on the Saturday before Thanksgiving week in which to pick up their food at a set location. Any food not collected is given to alternate families and donated to Fort Bend Women’s Shelter.
How They Do It Today – Volunteer Power
Families Helping Families has partnered with HEB and a team of volunteer professionals from various fields ranging from shipping to logistics. They arrange refrigeration trucks to deliver the food to three distribution locations on the morning of Friday before distribution Saturday. The team, including Quincy, is 100% volunteer. In addition to this team, they rely on 300 plus volunteers each year consisting of individuals, corporate teams, and organizational teams to gather on Friday to unload, sort, and pack the food so it can be delivered to one of three distribution points in Alief, Stafford, and Richmond. On Saturday, those volunteers return to help coordinate the cars arriving for appointments and hand out the food. They fill 300 cars every 30 minutes.
How You Can Be a Part of Families Helping Families
Volunteer
Families Helping Families welcomes volunteers. It is a two-day commitment to get involved. If you have a group or organization, they will make sure your team is stationed together to work as a group. To volunteer, visit: https://www.fhfhouston.com/ and click on their volunteer sign up link. From there you can follow the organization in Eventbrite and will be notified when it is time to sign up.
Donate
If you would like to donate as an individual or to participate as a corporate sponsor, visit the website. There are several levels of sponsorships and various types of recognition for your donation. Not only are the donations tax deductible, but 87% of all of the funds received go directly to purchasing groceries and the other 13% goes to renting the equipment and putting on the event itself.
For additional information, email them at [email protected].
Families Helping Families is a 501©(3) non-profit organization.
Meet Houston Missions and The Simmons and Fletcher Local Missions Podcast is presented by Simmons and Fletcher, P.C.
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