b'The F2F program has given us the opportunity to meet passionate brothers and sisters in Christ and learn more about ministries that maybe we would have never crossed paths with. Bethany MillerCommunity for Farmers to Families distributedto the mission, and the mission has more than 2 million boxes of food to vulnerable families.doubled the number of boxes they send out to Klamath Falls Gospel Mission in Southernthe community since beginning the F2F Oregon operates as a distribution hub. Multipleprogram. Executive Director Ammond Crawford delivery trucks arrive at the mission, where vol- said, Over 40 agencies, churches, and small busi-unteers off-load and sort the food, and then loadnesses have received pallets of boxes of delicious, it onto trucks and trailers driven by communityhealthy produce to distribute to the families in partners. All of this is done with no financial costour community. \x02How it Works One example of Farmers to Families impactThe Farmers to Families Food Box Program is a program in which the USDA has allocated $3 billion of funding to help farmers and vulnerable families who are struggling as a result of COVID. The way this program works is: The USDAs Agricultural Marketing Service procures an estimated $100 million per month in fresh fruits and vegetables, $100 million per month in a variety of dairy products, and $100 million per month in meat products. Food distribution companies put in a bid to the USDA to build five different types of preapproved food boxes: produce, mixed dairy, or precooked meat (chicken and pork) boxes; combination boxes; or fluid milk. Distributors then send truckloads of these boxes to nonprofit organizations who serve families in need.The FaithBased Community for Farmers to Families uses a hub and POD model. A community hub Photos courtesy of CityServe coordinates receiving, storage, manpower, and delivery of food. They partner with surrounding ministries called PODS (points of distribution), that pick up boxes from the hub and directly distribute them to the surrounding communities. SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2020 WWW.CITYGATENETWORK.ORG 43'