Tarrant Area Food Bank's New Resources and Education Delivered Bus Will Serve Arlington Community

By Office of Communication

Posted on March 28, 2022, March 28, 2022

The Tarrant Area Food Bank, in partnership with the City of Arlington and Tom Thumb/Albertsons, unveiled its new Resources and Education Delivered (R.E.D.) Bus this weekend. The R.E.D. Bus will provide community resource assistance, nutrition education, and healthy food options to Arlington communities with high levels of food insecurity.

Tarrant Area Food Bank is launching this initiative to bring their services directly to those most in need in the city of Arlington. At the heart of this program is an ADA-compliant mobile service delivery unit, the R.E.D. Bus, a specially-built vehicle, which provides space for the display and distribution of grocery items and office space for TAFB staff to conduct SNAP enrollment and other community service referrals.

“As we continue to provide community support to relieve the effects of the pandemic, we are deepening our roots in Arlington by launching solutions that bring our services to the people in underserved communities where transportation may be lacking,” said Julie Butner, President and CEO of Tarrant Area Food Bank, “TAFB will provide emergency food boxes, nutrition education, as well as facilitate enrollment of eligible families into federal benefits programs such as SNAP and Medicaid with our R.E.D. Bus”.

The R.E.D. Bus made its first official stop on Saturday for a ribbon-cutting ceremony and grand opening of a new school pantry, The Mustang Market, at Nichols Junior High in Arlington.

The R.E.D. Bus will serve approximately 5,000 low-income residents and family members per month. TAFB will serve individuals of all ages and is working directly with the City of Arlington to identify specific community neighborhoods based on income and food insecurity data. The R.E.D. Bus will make multiple stops in a single day, connecting families to food, SNAP benefits and additional community resources to address housing, education, and employment.

“The City of Arlington is proud to partner with the Tarrant Area Food Bank and support the development of The R.E.D. Bus, which will help continue the nonprofit’s work of providing nutritional meals and critical resources where they are needed most in our community,” said Mayor Jim Ross.

This concept caught the eye of Tom Thumb/Albertsons, who has generously provided funding for the bus and staffing over the next two years. The R.E.D. Bus reinforced their commitment to “Nourishing Neighbors” hunger-relief resources during the current pandemic health crisis.

“Albertsons Companies Southern Division has an ongoing mission to help fight hunger in the communities we serve, and our most urgent mission is to be here for our shared communities and schools when they need us most,” said Wes Jackson, Division President, Albertsons Companies Southern Division.