Answering a call at the front desk from someone facing homelessness and guiding them through the process of applying for assistance.
Assisting an appreciative grandmother as she loads her car with groceries from the ACO Food Pantry.
Sorting donated clothing and household items to ensure the ACO Cares Center is stocked with essentials for families in need.
What comes to mind when you think of All Community Outreach? To many, their first thought is that we are a food pantry. And we are! We are one of the largest in Collin County. Last year, more than 1.4 MILLION pounds of food were distributed to local families facing hunger.
But ACO is more than a food pantry. You probably also think of ACO as an agency to provide financial assistance to those families facing homelessness. And we are! ACO receives an average of 20 applications each day from Collin County residents requesting help with their rent and utility bills.
If you followed ACO’s progress last year, then you know we had quite a year of expansion! We weren’t one of those agencies who had big bucks to match our big dreams (oh yes, we did have the dreams!) of building a big beautiful new facility to serve Collin County families. We could have spent a few years in the midst of a capital campaign to raise funds to do so. However, is that the best use of funding? How many families could we help versus the cost of a new building?
Happy New Year! I hope that your year is off to a great start and that 2025 is a very happy and healthy year for you and your family.
Our staff and our Board of Directors will be looking ahead to the new year and how we can continue to grow and improve upon programs and services to change more lives in 2025. We’re a bit different than other local agencies in how we serve the community.
I am writing this early, and during our busiest week of the entire year. This is my monthly message to our community-to our donors, our volunteers and our ACO family. Usually, I would wrap up the month with what’s critical to ACO at the time, or as in this case as it is the end of year email to you.
But so much is on my mind as we begin this week before Christmas. This IS the busiest week all year long for All Community Outreach. It is also the worst week AND the best week. Let me explain…
Last month I told you about Sandra and her kids. Your many emails and inquiries about how you could help her this holiday season was so appreciated and heartwarming. Thank you!
I could tell you about Kevin, a single dad facing eviction, or Sasha, another mom working two jobs and still unable to pay her rent this month. There’s the elderly woman just a few blocks over from the ACO office whose children and grandchildren had to move in with her because they lost their home and now, she’s trying to feed and support them all on her fixed income. We paid her utility bill this month to keep them warm. She depends on the ACO Pantry and Cares Center to feed those babies!