Minnie's Food Pantry to Feed Thousands in Thanksgiving Giveaway

Many North Texas organizations are dedicated to helping their neighbors in need despite the pandemic, supply shortages and financial hardships.

One of them is Minnie’s Food Pantry in Plano, and something good happened there Thursday ahead of their annual Thanksgiving Giveaway Saturday.

“Ricky Smiley and his morning show just donated $10,000 to their efforts to fight hunger this holiday season,” Jackson said. “We are just thankful that we continue to have the support of the community to be able to help so many people.”

The Dallas Mavericks have also partnered with the Thanksgiving Giveaway event.

Registration for the Thanksgiving Giveaway is already closed, but Jackson said they will go back to regular food distributions the following Wednesday for families in need.

Minnie’s Food Pantry, which is named after her late mother, continues to be a staple in the community.

"We take out the stigma of people who need help to be looked down on," Jackson said.

Jackson said she does it because she used to be the person in need of help.

“That used to be me. It used to be me trying to feed my own family and feed my own children. I just said, 'God, there has to be a better way to serve people in need because I’m not a bad person. Just something bad has happened that I haven’t had enough funds,'” Jackson said.

The pandemic has made the mission harder, but not impossible.

"It's more difficult because the need is so much greater than before. Before the pandemic, we were feeding maybe 1,000 to 3,000 families when the pandemic hit, we went up to 30,000. Now we are averaging 10,000-15,000 in a normal month," Jackson said.

Jackson said Minnie’s is always looking for volunteers and donations that will help them provide much-needed resources to the community through the holiday season.