Even after the final runner crossed the finish line of the Cowtown Marathon, the Fort Worth tradition and its leaders continue to serve the Fort Worth community and beyond. Beginning Friday, April 17, Cowtown Marathon will donate its headquarters building to nearby neighbor Tarrant Area Food Bank (TAFB) as a satellite location for increased production.
This temporary use facility, coined the Cowtown Packing Center, is to be powered by Air National Guard from which Tarrant Area Food Bank requested assistance. The Cowtown Packing Center will operate Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. to unload, sort and package food, as well as stay on top of waste management and sanitization in accordance with current TAFB practices to reduce the spread of COVID-19. Fresh produce bags and emergency relief boxes packed at this location will be distributed to seniors, who have recently experienced an increased need in senior-friendly groceries.
Tarrant Area Food Bank President & CEO Julie Butner said, “We are grateful for support from The Cowtown Marathon. With so much production occurring at our own Distribution Center, we need additional space to assemble produce bags and emergency relief boxes. I am a long-time participant of The Cowtown Marathon, so Heidi Swartz and the Cowtown Marathon offices immediately came to mind. The use of their facility will provide much needed assembly space to accommodate the 50% increased need for food in our community. This temporary solution fell perfectly and quickly into place. I am over-the-moon proud of our community and this collaborative support!”
Heidi Swartz, Executive Director at The Cowtown states, “Fort Worth has the proud and ingrained tradition of neighbor helping neighbor, it is part of what makes our race so welcoming to 25,000 runners every year. It was an easy decision to partner with TAFB, providing additional space for emergency relief box production. We are blessed to have the right location, the right staff, and the right leadership to make this happen quickly. It makes us proud to be of service.”
In addition to the National Guard assisting in the Cowtown Produce Packing Center for Tarrant Area Food Bank, they will also assist at three of TAFB’s “Super Pantries” in Mansfield and Fort Worth to distribute food to the large populations there.
ABOUT THE COWTOWN: The Cowtown Marathon, the largest multi-event road race in North Texas, has a $10.4 million weekend economic impact in Fort Worth, Texas, and hosts one of the largest youth races in the nation. Recently voted America’s favorite marathon 2020 by RaceRaves, the 43rd annual Cowtown is scheduled for Friday, February 26 through Sunday, February 28, 2021 at Will Rogers Memorial Center in Fort Worth, Texas. Proceeds from The Cowtown go directly to The C.A.L.F. Program, a charitable youth project that instills a life-long love of running. www.cowtownmarathon.org.
ABOUT TARRANT AREA FOOD BANK: TARRANT AREA FOOD BANK (TAFB) empowers communities to eliminate hunger by providing food, education and resources through innovation and collaboration across 13 counties, including Tarrant County. Through a network of 330 partners, TAFB is able to provide access to 600,000 nutritious meals each week to children and adults facing hunger. This work resulted in access to 30 million nutritious meals in fiscal year 2019. Learn more at www.tafb.org.
