Mesa County Hunger Alliance Story and History
Community Food Bank opens in their newly renovated permanent facility – paving the way for four years of incredible growth. The new facility enabled CFB to expand hours, re-open to the public as a full client choice model, expand home delivery operations, launch a nutrition exploration program, and serve 4x the individuals in Mesa County.
The Colorado State University Community Food Systems program begins its nutrition enrichment programs in area food pantries. Based at the Western Colorado Research Center, since 2017 the program has directed over half million pounds of hand-picked fruits and vegetables to respond to food and nutritional insecurity on the Western Slope.
Clifton Christian Church Food Bank has operated since 1989 and received its status as a nonprofit in 2021. CCC Food Bank renovated their facility to provide for a full client choice model, along with drive through service, resource navigation to better serve clients, and are no longer solely volunteer led, better responding to the 64,000 visits they receive annually.
Colorado Mesa University (CMU) receives designation as a Hunger Free Campus from Colorado Dept. of Higher Education. CMU is working to increase SNAP enrollment for eligible students and offers an on-campus food pantry, The Pantry. CMU’s Sodexo Dining Services provides extra prepared foods to The Pantry, for any student or staff in need.
The City of Grand Junction establishes the Housing Division after adopting the City of GJ Housing Strategy. The Neighbor-2-Neighbor (N2N) Referral Team launches in November 2022 in response to needs observed during outreach to unhoused camps. As of September 2024, the team includes 18 professionals, including mental health providers, medical staff, case managers, and housing navigators. The City is rolling out an Unhoused Strategy and Implementation Plan with 60 participants forming workgroups to implement various strategies to address homelessness and food insecurity.
Food Bank of the Rockies and Meals on Wheels Mesa County move into their new facility, which creates more efficiencies and collaboration for both organizations and the broader hunger relief community.
