Dallas, Nov. 15, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) hosted a special event at its Perot Family Campus in Plano on Saturday, November 5, 2022, to recognize the Nihao Food Bank Initiative’s sponsorship of a food distribution truck through the holidays. Nihao Food Bank Initiative (Nihao) is a Chinese American, volunteer-driven grassroots movement. Its goal is to raise awareness about hunger in North Texas, improve community engagement among Chinese Americans, and direct resources toward NTFB to fight hunger.
Since launching in May of 2021, Nihao has engaged over 475 members and raised more than $183,000, and volunteered 2,100 hours helping at NTFB’s warehouse, fundraising, and community events like the recent Dragon Boat Race and Lantern Festival in Irving. In addition, Nihao started a Youth Ambassadors program and now has 96 dedicated high school students who volunteer and fundraise for NTFB.
“We are so grateful for the support of organizations like Nihao that recognize the growing issue of hunger and look for innovative ways to contribute to the organizations addressing this complex problem,” said NTFB President and CEO Trisha Cunningham. “In just a short time they have made a significant impact in our mission of hunger relief and are mentoring the next generation of community leaders through their Youth Ambassadors program.”
Nihao was founded by Jane Li, Director of Operations for Siemens Logistics, James Huang, a Managing Partner at EA Insurance and Financial Services, Bing Xie, former Executive officer and SVP of Global Sales and Applications at Texas Instruments.
“We are excited to unveil the Nihao truck co-branded with North Texas Food Bank,” said Bing Xie, Nihao Co-Founder. “This traveling billboard will highlight how the Chinese American community is partnering with NTFB to provide access to nutritious food for the more than 700,000 people facing hunger in North Texas and serves as a visual reminder of what community groups can do in the fight against hunger when they come together to make an impact. For the Nihao members, it is just part of our continued effort to mobilize and engage the already civic-minded Chinese American community.”
Last week, the North Texas Food Bank recognized Nihao as the Top Community Group for raising funds and collecting peanut butter for its annual peanut butter drive. For the second year in a row, they hosted a community competition and held multiple drives throughout the Peanut Butter Campaign. This year, they raised $25,876 and donated over 5,000 pounds of peanut butter.
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About North Texas Food Bank
The North Texas Food Bank (NTFB) is a top-ranked nonprofit hunger-relief organization that sources, packages and distributes food through a diverse network of more than 400 feeding partners including food pantries and community organizations across 13 North Texas counties. The organization also provides food to children, seniors and families through various direct-delivery programs, including mobile pantries.
In its last fiscal year, the NTFB provided access to nearly 137 million nutritious meals, a 9% percent increase over the prior year. In response to the ongoing elevated hunger crisis, the organization has launched a $500 million campaign, Nourish North Texas, to provide more food for today and hope for tomorrow by addressing the barriers to food security that our neighbors face.
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