HARLINGEN — As individuals and families continue to face financial hardships due to the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic, organizations and entities are striving to help in any way they can.
Thursday morning, members and volunteers of the House of Hope church distributed boxes of food to around 430 families.
Each box was filled with a variety of fruit and vegetables provided by the Farmers to Families program, which is part of the Coronavirus Farm Assistance Program that was created in April.
“We want to thank DiMare Fresh from the DFW area,” House of Hope Pastor Daniel Martinez said. “We want to thank them for this opportunity that they joined with the government in this program and it gives us the blessing to be able to bless our community.”
Additionally, House of Hope volunteers and members added drinks and children’s toys in the boxes.
According to Martinez, there was a constant flow of people visiting the food distribution from 9 a.m. to around 12:45 p.m.
“We gave it all out and there were still people coming, driving and calling at that time,” he said. “I had people calling from all over the Valley — Raymondville, Rio Hondo, La Feria, Harlingen, San Benito and anywhere. It’s difficult to tell people that you don’t have food because we ran out, but we couldn’t do anything about that.”
For Martinez, it was a privilege and honor to be able to to serve the community and fellow brethrens.
“We had an older gentleman swing by to pick up food and he was crying. That really meant a lot to us,” Martinez said. “We also had a lot of people who texted us afterwards to say that people were in a big need of it and things of that nature, but it was wonderful.”
Martinez said this was an opportunity for the church to share a bit of hope with the community, let them know that they are all in this together and that they’re going to get through it.
“We want to thank God for the opportunity that he’s given us and for the privilege that he’s given us to serve our local community and this region,” Martinez said. “The Bible does say it’s better to give than to receive and it’s only when you experience that, you’re able to find true joy in those words.”
For more information about House of Hope, visit www.houseofhopergv.com or call (956) 423-4673.
