Cynthia Russell, executive director of the Churches Touching Lives For Christ ministries, sees it up close every day.
The building faces West Avenue G, where some of the city’s toughest times seem to materialize. Outside her window, a sign that proclaims “Last Chance” - the name of the bar across the street, might spell despair for some who congregate nearby, but inside the doors of the CTLC, many find a whole lot of hope and faith.
For 14 years, CTLC has indeed been touching lives by providing food and clothing to those who can’t always purchase it for themselves.
In Temple, there are 10,000 names in the CTLC database, some of whom receive help for their utility bills, receive counseling or a word of prayer.
However, the greatest need is always food and clothing.
Last weekend, Ms. Russell said there were so many people in the center that there was nowhere to sit, and on Saturday nearly 100 families were served.
“It’s a lot more than we can handle,” Ms. Russell said.
Mike Bergman, executive director for Helping Hands Ministry in Belton, said the increase in fuel costs brought the highest month of new clients, 70, in the 15 months that he has been there.
“What we’re mostly hearing is that the gas prices and the struggle that that creates for the clients, the struggle to meet their needs,” he said, adding that there is a variety of situations that can lead to people needing to come to the center.
“We’re doing about 540 families a week, in a building that was designed to do it for less than 100,” Bergman said.
Ann Farris, volunteer coordinator for the Food Care Center in Killeen, said the center has seen some tough times lately.
“It’s the perfect storm,” Ms. Farris said referring to the high cost of living, the increase in fuel prices and the lack of fresh produce availability due to the dry weather. “Since donations are down, we are buying more food. We’ve doubled the amount of money we are investing in buying food and we can’t do that indefinitely.”
In Killeen, 4,699 individuals used the Food Care Bank in July, up 20 percent from the previous month, Ms. Farris said.
And during that same month, the Food Care Center gave away 92,000 pounds of food.
“That’s really about average, and it really needs to be more,” she said. “We’ve had a 20 percent increase in people, but not a 20 percent increase in the amount of food we can give to them.”
Sadly, many of those who come through the door of the food bank in Killeen are serving in the military and many of those soldiers are probably the lower enlisted ranks with several children.
Although the CTLC is by comparison much smaller, they also stayed busy through the month of July, serving 1,713 people.
Much of what comes into the food banks in Bell County comes from the Capital Area Food Bank in Austin, but also comes from other sources.
For instance, CTLC, for much of their 14 years, have relied on the help of area churches to help them feed the destitute and working poor.
In fact, Ms. Russell works off a list that has the area churches broken down to provide 10 food items, such as canned corn and green beans, rice and beans, fruit juice and soup.
She has relied on help of local truck drivers who deliver to local grocers who don’t always purchase their entire order of produce that is shipped to them.
When that happens, Russell might get a phone call from one of those truckers to pick up a load of peaches, red cabbages or even candy.
All of that is given away to the needy or to other food pantries in the Bell County area, Russell said.
However, more help is needed at the Food Care Center in Killeen and the CTLC in Temple.
So what do the food banks need?
Staples of cereal and peanut butter are high on the list for both.
Russell said CTLC needs other food items, like beans and rice and fresh fruits and vegetables, and other items like used clothing for men, women and children.
Mostly though, they need more help to get things done.
“Our guys who do the unloading are worn out,” Russell said. “We need all the help that we can get.”
