How This Group is Fighting Food Insecurity in Northwest Tarrant County

By Fousia Abdullahi

July 24, 2025

Michael Lloyd, a volunteer with Community Link for three years, loads groceries from the food pantry into a clients vehicle on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. The pantry provides about two weeks of food per pickup. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com

Community Link Mission, a food pantry serving communities in Northwest Tarrant County, is introducing a new way to support families facing food insecurity. Located in Saginaw, the program serves up to 160 families, three days a week and offers an online shopping program on Wednesdays, allowing people to place orders online and schedule a pick up from the food pantry.

Community Link’s fresh produce is sourced through it farmers market partnerships, where it works with two local markets to purchase their end-of-day produce.

Volunteers at Community Link load carts full of groceries from their food pantry for pickup on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Saginaw. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com

Trey Harper, executive director of Community Link, said Northwest Tarrant County is often overlooked and under-resourced, and homelessness is not as visible due to the population being less dense than other areas. “

Not only does it support local farming, but then it puts that fresh produce into our fresh food program,” Harper said, referring to the farmers market partnerships.

Harper said people in that community are sometimes one emergency away from losing their homes.

“Anything that we can do to draw attention to Northwest Tarrant County, and the needs, especially since it’s one of the fastest growing areas is super important,” Harper said.

Pauline Hartley, a volunteer with Community Link for over a year, gathers groceries for clients of the food pantry on Tuesday, July 22, 2025. The pantry provides about two weeks of food per pickup. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com

One of the challenges that food pantry’s face is getting enough fresh produce.

Community Link is addressing this through a new project called ‘Fresh Link Farms,’ a hydroponic Freight Farm that’s able to grow lettuce, leafy greens, herbs, root vegetables and edible flowers in a 320-square-foot space, which will be next to the Azle Farmers Market, a press release said.

“It looks just like a shipping container, but inside it’s a hydroponic vertical farm, and it will grow at max capacity about 1,000 heads of lettuce a week,” Harper said.

Vanessa Thompson, food program manager, said that some customers have been coming to the pantry since it opened 20 years ago.

The pantry gives a variety of what is on hand each day: frozen food, meat, eggs, produce, bread, hygiene products, and pantry items like coffee and pet food.

Volunteers at Community Link load carts full of groceries from their food pantry for pickup on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Saginaw. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com

“We add in snacks and desserts, because it’s real life, and people have kids,” Thompson said.

Harper stated that 90% of people who use food pantries are employed and still struggle to put food on the table.

According to Feeding Texas, a statewide network of food banks, Texas has the highest food insecurity population in the nation, with one in six Texas households experiencing food insecurity. This includes 13.6% of Texas seniors who are at risk of hunger and one in five children experiencing hunger.

“It’s OK to ask for help,” Thompson said. “A lot of people sometimes come in and they’re very nervous and embarrassed, and they’ve never done it before, and they’re scared to ask questions, or they’re scared to fill out paperwork.”

Thompson said the pantry is private, judgment free and people should come in if they have a need.

Community Link is a faith-based agency that originated from three churches. It has expanded to 20 church partners, and this is where the majority of their volunteers come from.

Hayden Edwards said he joined the organization through his church, initially as a volunteer, and then as a work when a job became available as a warehouse worker.

“Our clients are amazing people,” Edwards said. “Every time I have a chance to interact with them, I’ll take it, I’ll either try loading or doing check-in, just because those interactions help me just as much as they help them.”

Volunteers at Community Link load load groceries from their food pantry into vehicles on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Saginaw. Amanda McCoy amccoy@star-telegram.com

Mark Boyer, a retiree who has been volunteering through Eagles View Church, said for him, it’s about being able to give back and he sees how people are so thankful for the help.

Community Link partners with companies and the Eagle Mountain-Saginaw school district, whose students and staff volunteer. In addition to the food pantry,

Community Link offers case management and mental health services.

With funding cuts being made to food programs across the country, food pantries are looking for more donations.

“Usually, during the holidays,” Thompson said. “We get a lot of donations and stuff, but people are hungry all year long, and it’s very important to have food donations all year long.”

Read more at: https://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/article310867760.html#storylink=cpy