With a base of only 15 volunteers, Keep US Fed Montgomery County has collected and distributed more than 221,000 pounds of food to those in need since its inception.


KUSF began as a project by the Leadership Montgomery County Class of 2015. The program was adapted from a similar program called Keep Austin Fed. The organization receives food donations from community partners, such as restaurants and grocery stores, and delivers those items to organizations also working to end hunger.


“From  any point in [Montgomery] County, you can drive 15 minutes and find somebody in need—and that includes the heart of The Woodlands,” founding member and volunteer Dave Blocker said. “About 1 in 7 individuals in the U.S. deals with food insecurity, and in Texas, that statistic is 1 in 6—so there’s quite a need.”


The first food collection and donation—or “food run”—was made in December 2014. In May 2015, the program was handed off to the Montgomery County Homeless Coalition.


KUSF now has 19 community partners that regularly donate food, and it provides supplies to 19 recipient organizations. The nonprofit makes approximately 20 food runs every week.


“When we first started, we only did two food runs a week—so just the sheer scale of the program has changed incredibly since then,” Blocker said. “So that means we need more volunteers to keep us going, but it also means that our impact on the community is a lot greater.”


In 2015, KUSF collected and distributed 23,000 pounds of food; in 2016, that number more than quadrupled, skyrocketing to 109,000 pounds. As of May 2017, the organization had already reached 89,000 pounds.


Although the organization’s expenses are relatively low, it still provides each volunteer with a starter kit, which includes plastic bins, cold storage bags, a food thermometer, scales and food handling gloves.


The organization runs solely off donations and volunteer generosity, but Blocker said he hopes to one day have a refrigerated truck or trailer to transport food during the heat of the summer.


“We’re just neighbors helping neighbors,” he said. “Right now, it’s all people’s personal vehicles and personal time, so it’s very much a grassroots effort. It’s not a huge time consumption and it’s not extremely complicated—you just have to have a giving heart and some extra time.”


Blocker said KUSF hopes to continue gaining volunteers, community partners and recipients in an effort to end hunger countywide.


“We’re just trying to help where we can and help these other organizations’ dollars go farther,” he said. “There are people who have to choose between whether or not they can buy a carton of milk or a loaf of bread. If you’re fortunate enough to not have that concern, doing something small to help alleviate part of the problem [makes a big difference].”