Loaves and Fishes opening new facility in Naperville

With Saturday’s debut of its new facility, Naperville’s Loaves and Fishes Community Pantry is poised to triple offerings of fresh and nutritious food to 150,000 pounds a week and expand its distribution hours.

The grand opening of the new warehouse at 1871 High Grove Lane will begin at 8 a.m. with a ribbon-cutting and food distribution for the first clients. An open house and tours of the 16,884-square-foot facility will be available from 1 to 5 p.m.

“The new facility will position us to fulfill our mission of client empowerment by offering access to additional key services,” Executive Director Charles McLimans said.

The new services, he said, will aim to help clients achieve self-sufficiency by addressing the root causes of hunger through a proactive and preventive approach to food insecurity and poverty issues.

”Providing on-site access to information and collaborating with other organizations focused on poverty issues will empower our clients to improve their lives.”

One partnership already publicized is with the Internal Revenue Service through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. Open to all clients as well as any member of the community who declares less than $49,000 annually or is over the age of 60, the VITA program will provide free income tax assistance preparation.