Description
In 1982, a visionary group of people chaired by Henry Campbell gathered to address a community need: local food pantries were sourcing their food independently, relying on food donations and grocery store purchases to stock their shelves. They needed a more consistent and affordable food supply.
Henry Campbell’s team identified the need for an organization that could supply the food for these programs - purchase food in bulk, store it safely, and distribute it to pantries in the area. They made connections with Gleaners Food Bank in Indianapolis and Dare to Care Food Bank in Louisville to develop a plan, and on June 24, 1982, Tri-State Food Bank was established.
With a borrowed pickup truck, the food bank’s founders began a simple operation that served seven nonprofit hunger relief agencies in Evansville, Indiana. Today, Tri-State Food Bank supplies over 14 million pounds of food annually - the equivalent of over 12 million meals - to 240 food pantries and meal programs throughout 33 counties in Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. Hundreds of volunteers help make this possible by giving approximately 10,000 hours of their time each year.
Tri-State Food Bank’s operations include programs that focus especially on our most vulnerable populations: children, seniors, and those living in rural areas.
