ATLANTA — Thousands of people in southwest Atlanta depend on an emergency food bank that's helped fight hunger for more than three decades.
The food bank has grown to feed more than 50,000 families across the metro every year. However, the food bank said it's being forced out of the location they've called home for so long.
Barbara Chambers said she doesn't mind the journey to get to the Southwest Ecumenical Emergency Assistance Center (SWEEAC). She's depended on the food bank for 14 years.
"It's about a mile, but I love walking. Sometimes I ride the bus," she said.
She's worried about what will happen in 60 days when the nonprofit will have to leave the church they've worked out of for 34 years.
"It would be really hard because this is close to me. It's close to the old people in the homes," she said.
The church decided not to extend the nonprofit's lease of the basement. Executive Director Ernesta Ingram said they haven't been able to find another place in the area to rent.
"It is devastating, we have been looking for some time, but when we really started to look, the real estate market changed on us. We have talked to so many landlords who say they are not interested in a nonprofit, and that's likely because, with a nonprofit, you're not getting top dollar," Ingram said.
She said they want to stay close to the people who need them most.
Many of their clients, like Chambers, walk or ride the bus, to get the only meals they'll eat for the week from their food bank.
"The relocation process is going to impact the neighborhood because we don't know where we are going to go. If we move there will be a lot of families who feel the insecurity for their food source, that's what they're feeling here in the City of Atlanta," employee Tammy Patterson said.
The center donates a million and a half pounds of food each year, along with sanitary and personal care items.
They support thousands of senior citizens who don't have any money to spare.
"It's very important because there are a lot of people out here who are hungry and they don't have anywhere to go," Carter said.
The food bank is hoping to find a 10,000 to 15,000 warehouse space in southwest Atlanta by the beginning of September so they can keep helping families in need.