Feeding Avery Families is a dedicated nonprofit food pantry focused on addressing food insecurity in Avery County, North Carolina (including towns of Newland, Banner Elk, Elk Park, Pineola, Linville, Crossnore, Beech Mountain and Sugar Mountain). Founded in 2006 through a group of local volunteers, we are dedicated to eliminating hunger by providing supplemental food assistance to those in need.
Our Operations Center is located in Newland at 189 Old Vale Road (behind Avery County Board of Education and Mayland Community College, near Ingle’s). We are part of the MANNA Food Bank and Feeding America Network. We also partner with local farmers and grocery stores to provide fresh produce, dairy products, eggs, and prepared meals.
Food insecurity is a chronic problem in Avery County and the surrounding area. Before Hurricane Helene, approximately 3,000 (17%) of Avery County residents experienced some degree of uncertainty about their next meal. This includes almost 1,000 children.
Feeding Avery Families serves an average of 500-700 households per month. We distribute food in four ways: drive-thru pick-up, in-person shopping, mobile distributions/deliveries, and school backpacks. We distribute backpacks weekly to school-aged children with 6 meals and 4 snacks. We also anticipate an increase in neighbor needs due to our struggling local economy.
Volunteers are pivotal in the success of FAF. Each year, volunteers serve nearly 45,000 hours through our organization helping those in need of food assistance.
Feeding Avery Families relies greatly on the food industry, the state and federal government, local farmers, food drives, as well as corporate and individual donors, for sourcing the food that is then passed into the hands of our Avery County neighbors. A majority of the food FAF receives is donated. As the need in our region continues to grow, so has the amount of food that goes through our warehouse and to the tables of the people who need it most.
We depend on some amazing partners – read all about them!
Distribution Center
Through generous support from donors and grants, Feeding Avery Families opened a new operations center in 2023, the Dick Larson Food Pantry, providing great benefits for our neighbors and dedicated volunteers. Client choice allows neighbors to select items in a “shopping” experience, providing greater client satisfaction and significantly reduced waste. Perishable items can be safely stored in multiple walk-in coolers and freezers. Pre-packed boxes can be prepared and stored for drive-through, remote distribution and delivery programs. The demonstration kitchen / meeting room can be used for sample cooking, educational programs and meetings/events. It’s also the hub for mobile distributions.
Staff Members in photo left to right
- Kevin Duvalt, Warehouse Associate and Delivery Driver
kevind@feedingaveryfamilies.org - Vanessa Benavides Phillips, Program Manager
vanessap@feedingaveryfamilies.org - Bonnie Clark, Executive Director
director@feedingaveryfamilies.org - Cindy Reed, Office Manager
office@feedingaveryfamilies.org
Board of Directors
Cathy Fields, Laura Carringer-Russell, McNair Tornow, Rev. Michael McKee, Joe Zemanek, Larry Good, David Soyars, Jimmy Ennis and Tammy Woodie
FAF Annual Summaries
If you have questions, want to make a contribution, or volunteer, contact us at 828-783-8506. We are an equal opportunity food provider.