2023 Toyota Tundra Haul Away Hunger

February 15, 2023
8:41 pm

On Friday, February 3rd, despite the frigid temperatures and whipping winds, more than 85 Toyota Tundras gathered at the Philabundance Berks location to haul more than 650,000 pounds of nutritious food to help feed our local communities facing food insecurity.

As the food pallet-packed vehicles rolled into Citizens Bank Park parking lot P to unload, they were met with much fanfare and excitement. The celebration included Toyota leadership, dealership executives, and business partners. Philly’s favorite sports teams also represented and got everyone ramped up for this weekend’s big game, including our own popular mascot, Phil A. Beet, who had the crowd dancing all morning!

While it was a jovial atmosphere, the event has become a very serious necessity for so many folks in our region. If you think about the magnitude, that amount of food can feed double the capacity of Lincoln Financial Field, so that’s 134,000+ neighbors in need. Each week, Philabundance serves more than 135,000, “but the reality is, there are more than 500,000 people, including children and seniors, who go to bed each night not knowing where their next meal is coming from, or if they’ll have one at all,” said Loree Jones Brown, Philabundance CEO.

Paul Muller, President of the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association, adds that it’s “just unconscionable to think that so many people in our communities are in need of food, and Philabundance is a major lifeline to those who are food-insecure in our communities. There are a lot of things people should be in the United States, and ‘hungry’ is just not one of them. That’s what makes it so important for us to stay involved to help drive hunger away from every table in our local communities.” 

The Philabundance team would like to take a moment to send a huge THANK YOU to the Tri-State Toyota Dealers Association and its businesses partners. We are truly grateful for their tremendous support of the 14th Annual Toyota Tundra Food Drive “Haul Away Hunger” event.

You can help us drive hunger away too by visiting philabundance.org. Thank you for your continued support!

Philabundance Awards 49 Member Agencies with Capacity Grants

June 18, 2025

Philabundance has announced $250,000 in 2025–2027 Capacity Grants for 49 member agencies across Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey. This funding will provide the operational capital needed to allow organizations to remain flexible and able to adapt to changing needs.

From faith-based institutions in Delaware County to social service agencies meeting the needs of diverse families across Philadelphia County, the 2025–2027 Philabundance Capacity grantees are among the hundreds of organizations that partner with Philabundance to support the more than 600,000 individuals in our region experiencing food insecurity.

The grantees include

Bucks County: Bucks County Opportunity Council; Faith Baptist Church
Delaware County: Blessed Virgin Mary; Loaves & Fishes; Prayer Chapel Church of God in Christ
Mercer County: Prince of Peace Center
Montgomery County: Bethel Community Church; ElderNet of Lower Merion and Narberth; Grace Lutheran Norristown; Love Works Resource Center; Mitzvah Circle; Upper Merion Area Community Cupboard; Patrician Society
Philadelphia County: African Family Health Organization; Alexander McClure Elementary School; Bebashi; Bethany Missionary Baptist Church; Breaking Bread on Broad; Bright Hope Baptist Church; Broad Street Love; Brothers of Strawberry Mansion; Calvary Agape Outreach Services; Casa Del Carmen; Cast Your Cares; Christ Apostolic WOSEM; Community Center at Visitation; Episcopal Community Services; The Family Practice & Counseling Network; First Church Worship Center; Germantown Avenue Crisis Ministry; Grace Community Christian Center; Kensington Health Sciences Academy; Lutheran Settlement House; Mighty Writers; Mi Salud Wellness; Nationalities Services Center; North Light Community Center; Old Pine Community Center; Open Door Ministries; Our Brothers Place; Paul L Dunbar School; Project H.O.M.E.; Southwest Family Service Center; St. Paul Outreach; Word In Action International Ministries
York County: Bethlehem Baptist Church; Mattie Dixon Community Center
Southern New Jersey: Puerto Rican Unity for Progress; SisterHood Inc.

Philabundance Capacity Grants help improve each organization’s ability to operate more efficiently and deliver effective food distribution programs and services. To date, $4.4 million dollars in Philabundance Capacity Grants have been allocated for capacity-building infrastructure, such as refrigerators, freezers, refrigerated vans and technology to empower community partners and improve the food distribution network.

“As federal resources continue to shrink and hunger remains a distressing reality in the Greater Philadelphia region, community-based nonprofits are often a lifeline for families in need of healthy food,” said Loree D. Jones Brown, CEO of Philabundance. “Investing directly in our partners and their infrastructure allows us to swiftly and efficiently meet the needs of thousands of our friends and neighbors experiencing food insecurity.”

“Breaking Bread on Broad is [very] grateful for the new refrigerators we will be able to purchase with our Philabundance grant,” said Dan Seltzer, co-leader of Breaking Bread on Broad (BBoB). “Breaking Bread on Broad is the food pantry of Congregation Rodeph Shalom whose mission is to provide our neighbors in need with food, diapers and period supplies each week. With this grant, we will be able to provide our BBoB neighbors with more fresh fruits, vegetables, and protein to better feed their families.”

“With this funding, Casa Del Carmen will invest in critical hardware—such as commercial refrigeration, durable shelving, metal prep-table and mini hand pallet jack—that will enhance the efficiency and reliability of our food pantry operations,” said Janet DeJesus, office manager at Casa Del Carmen. “These improvements will allow us to store more fresh and nutritious food, reduce waste, and serve our neighbors more quickly and with greater dignity. By strengthening our infrastructure, we are not only improving daily logistics but also deepening our commitment to food security and community well-being.”