The Jacksonville Area Community Food Center has moved into a new building over the weekend.
The non-profit organization that provides several hundred low-income families with essential food has moved into a larger space at the former Production Press building, located at 311 East Morgan Street. The move was directly south across the parking lot from their old space at 316 East State Street.
Food Center Administrator Melissa Hall says the new space provides new opportunities: “It is a much needed expansion. We worked with the owners of the building and made it a more comfortable situation for all. We’ve tripled our size. We are very fortunate to work with the owners to have this new space. Right now, our service numbers are up over 400% from where we were last year, which equates to about 3,000 people per month.”
Hall says each week a family seeking food at the center alternates between a food box depending upon family size and baked goods in order to help people get people over the hump of food insecurity.
Hall says the new space will allow them to expand accessibility and inventory and offer a few more options food-wise.
She says the Food Center continually takes donations and volunteers. She says the best thing to do is simply show up at the new location Monday through Friday 9AM to Noon. She says you may also call and set up an appointment to drop off any donations: “If you can’t make it to our normal hours, I am there from 7:30AM to 9AM for donations and to get things ready for our opening. Volunteers working inside the center is also needed. We have a couple of days a week that, even if a person is only available for an hour, you can come and help. We have some people who work for just an hour and some who work for 3 hours. It really just depends on the person’s availability and what their schedule allows.”
If you have any further questions, you can contact Hall via phone at 217-243-1122 or email jacfc1@gmail.com.