North Texas Food Bank plans free food distribution at Fair Park on Aug 11; walk-up option added

The North Texas Food Bank will be returning to Fair Park on Tuesday, Aug. 11 for its fourth free food distribution there as the agency continues to address food insecurity during the coronavirus pandemic.

While the food bank’s previous distributions at Fair Park have used a strictly drive-through format, Tuesday’s will have a new walk-up option for people without cars.

Food will be distributed from 8 to 11 a.m., or until all food is gone. The distribution is being hosted with The Prep Kitchen, Spectra, and nonprofits Fair Park First, Miles of Freedom and In the City for Good.

People in vehicles should enter through Gate 2 and follow signs to pick up food in Lots 15 and 16. Boxed food will be placed in the trunk of each vehicle or, if the trunk won’t open, atop the hood.

Walk-up participants should enter the fairgrounds by DART’s Fair Park Station and pick up food between the Women’s Building and Gate 3. All walk-up guests will be required to wear a mask and will be asked to practice social distancing while in line.

Organizers ask that all clients start lining up at 7 a.m. The Dallas Police Department will assist with traffic flow.

No ID is required, but intake forms must be filled out upon arrival for the Texas Emergency Food Assistance Program. Each client is required to fill out a self-declared form with name, address, monthly income and household size.

The food bank also announced that volunteers will be welcome; sign-up is available at ntfb.org. For several months, Texas National Guard troops helped bolster the food bank’s manpower as an increasing number of residents faced food insecurity during the pandemic. But the guardsmen finished their deployment July 22, a food bank representative said.

While the distribution is the first at Fair Park in three months, the food bank has been conducting other drive-through services throughout the Dallas-Fort Worth area, said Anna Kurian, a North Texas Food Bank representative.

Recent mobile food pantry distributions have seen an uptick in clients, which may be attributed to people preparing for the loss of unemployment and CARES Act benefits, Kurian said.

Details

What: North Texas Food Bank food distribution

When: 8 to 11 a.m. Tuesday, Aug. 11; line-up starts at 7 a.m.

Where: Dallas’ Fair Park. For drive-through clients, enter through Gate 2, at Parry and Haskell avenues, and follow signs to pick up food in Lots 15 and 16. For walk-ups, enter by DART’s Fair Park Station and pick up food between the Women’s Building and Gate 3.