The Franklin Reporter & Advocate Eight Villages, One Community
The Franklin Food Bank was recently recognized nationally with the 2025 Community Champion Hunger Leadership Award at the Congressional Hunger Center’s annual Hunger Leadership Awards Dinner.
Food Bank Executive Director Derek Smith accepted the award on behalf of the organization at the dinner, held June 4 in Washington, D.C.
The recognition highlights the Food Bank’s efforts to not only provide food, but empower families to thrive.
“Not all angels fly,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minnesota) said to Smith during the ceremony. “You are giving people the wings they need to fly with the work you are doing.”
In 2024, the Franklin Food Bank:
- Distributed 3.1 million pounds of food
- Facilitated more than 30,000 client visits
- Mobilized more than 17,000 volunteer hours
- Was awarded a $1 million grant by MacKenzie Scott’s Yield Giving foundation
Beyond food assistance, the Food Bank offers health screenings, nutrition workshops, and help with SNAP benefits, helping 94 percent of client families afford other essential needs, according to a press release about the award.
“Senator Klobuchar’s words deeply resonated, articulating precisely what we strive for: to provide the foundational support that allows our neighbors to build stable, healthy lives,” Smith said in the press release. “This award fuels our unwavering commitment to continue and expand our efforts, aligning with the Congressional Hunger Center’s powerful vision of a world free from hunger and poverty.”
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