Sewa International Distributes 260,000 lbs of Food, Water in Houston

Houston police officers joined hands with volunteers to distribute food at an event held on February 17.

Houston: Sewa International distributed over 260,000 pounds of food and more than 10,000 liters of bottled drinking water in Houston in six mega distribution drives held in February.

Sewa volunteers served more than 7,500 families in food drives held at apartment complexes, senior citizen centers, places of worship, and a United Way distribution center. These events were conducted in various parts of the town including Sharpstown, Bellaire, Rosharon, Brookshire, Hillcroft, Alief, and Pearland.

Partnering with Sewa International in these food drives were International Management District, Katy Youth Club, Southwest Management District, West Houston Assistance Ministries, American Red Cross, Brazoria Responds, St Andrew’s Episcopal Church, and Mosaic in Action. Sewa’s partnership with these organizations enabled volunteers to serve the communities where food and water were needed the most.

Simultaneously, Sewa AmeriCorps members conducted Disaster Case Management training at these locations to help residents prepare for future disasters. Volunteers worked to load boxes containing food onto the truck and unload and stack them at event locations. One partner organization also conducted COVID-19 testing in an apartment complex where the food drive was held.

Sewa International’s Houston Chapter coordinator Nikhil Jain said hundreds of families took part in these food drives and several cars waited in line to receive a box of food and water. He said the recent winter storm in Texas aggravated the food crisis as families suffering job losses due to the pandemic had to deal with burst water pipes, flooding, and other issues caused by extremely frigid weather.    

Nikhil Jain thanked partner organizations for their help in conducting the food drives. After the event, West Houston Assistance Ministries stated “wow! We still can’t believe how many cars/families waited in line to receive a box of food and water from our special food fair”. Sabrina, a volunteer from United Way, summed up the feeling of most volunteers when she said, “We had a great turnout serving Waller County. It’s a beautiful feeling to serve the community you live in”!