Help Feed The Needy During The Holidays

It was 26 years ago when Houston Police officer Joe Dominguez began a food drive during the Christmas holidays. His initial effort helped feed 600 families. Officer Alvin Steelman stepped in a few years later and expanded what Officer Dominguez started, and with the generous help of Fiesta Food Mart and the Pepsi Bottling Company.

“We have 14 different locations starting on Thursday, December 1st, and we’ll have officers volunteer to go out and help with the other volunteers from the churches and different organizations, and what we do is ask for money donations, spare change, or a can of food, any non perishable food that you can put on the table. And we collect all that food from the 14 different locations, and take that to the Pepsi warehouse and box it into 3,500 boxes.”

Andrea Schmauss is with the Houston Citizen Police Academy. With most food banks operating at capacity during the holidays, she says citizens can do their part to  make La Comida a success.

“I want people to stop and think that if they can afford to spare just one can of food, then to please come to the Fiesta Mart, drop it off, drop off your pennies. You don’t have to donate a lot, because everything that everybody puts together, is gonna feed those 3,500 people.”

The money that’s collected allows Fiesta to purchase food in bulk, trailer loads of potatoes, beans, canned vegetables, pasta and canned fruit. It results in more food added to the packed boxes. Churches involved in the food drive then deliver the boxes to neighborhoods where it’s most needed.

More information on the Comida Food Drive can be found at Fiesta Mart.com and HPD.org.

December 1- 4: Collection days at 14 Fiesta Marts