Holiday Meal Distribution

One of the icons of the holiday season in Cincinnati is a long line of people outside the FreestoreFoodbank’s Emergency Client Services Center on Liberty Street. Each year, more than 14,000 boxes of food are distributed to low income families just prior to Thanksgiving and Christmas. The FreestoreFoodbank believes hunger is unacceptable at any time, but especially during the holidays when families traditionally gather around the table.

Each household receives a box of food, a bag of produce, and (depending on family size) either a chicken, turkey or ham. While larger families receive larger boxes, every family receives the following: canned vegetables, canned fruit, canned cranberry or pumpkin, stuffing or rice, onions, potatoes, apples, macaroni and cheese, and brownie mix or other dessert. Approximately 35,000 persons are fed each year. Half of them are children.