From left: Hank Perret, Capital Area Food Bank CEO and president and Earl Maxwell, St. David's Foundation CEO, hold the $1 million check the foundation gave to the food bank for a new facility Dec. 16.[/caption]

St. David’s Foundation announced Dec. 16 that it is giving $1 million to the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas to help fund the completion of the food bank’s new facility.

At CAFB’s warehouse in Southwest Austin where donated food is sorted, St. David’s Foundation CEO Earl Maxwell presented a check to CAFB CEO and President Hank Perret.

“At St. David’s Foundation, our goal is to help Austin become the healthiest community in the world,” Maxwell said.

The foundation works with the food bank on its Healthy Options Program for the Elderly, which provides food to 3,800 aging and needy Central Texas residents, Maxwell said. With the completion of the food bank’s new, larger facility, the food bank can provide more assistance, he said.

“It’s critical to our seniors in our community that they have healthy food, especially when they’re taking medications,” Perret said. “The most vulnerable in our population-the elderly and children-are growing twice the rate of the general population growth in Central Texas, so it’s so important for us to be able to continue to grow the program and get the quantity and quality of food that seniors need for a healthy lifestyle.”

The new food bank facility, located at 6500 Metropolis Drive, is expected to be complete in the spring.