The Village Family Services works with many other organizations to fulfill our mission – we truly rely on a village to do this work.
We interviewed long-time partner Hollywood Food Coalition (HoFoCo), who help provide food for our Drop-In Center clients. Thank you, HoFoCo, for all you do for us and so many. You can visit their website to learn more about their history, incredible impact, and other partners.
Can you share more about the mission of Hollywood Food Coalition? How long have you been around, what is your impact?
The mission of Hollywood Food Coalition (HoFoCo) is to nourish the community by rescuing and distributing food, preparing nightly meals, and uniting efforts to achieve food equity. Our vision is a city where everyone has food, community, and support.
HoFoCo started 38 years ago, when we answered a call to action from the City of West Hollywood to help unhoused people in need and decided to offer sandwiches on a street corner and grew into a nightly Community Dinner for anyone in need. Since then we have been feeding Angelenos daily, and haven’t missed a single night. In 2020, we launched the Community Exchange program that rescues, organizes, and redistributes food to nonprofits and their communities throughout Los Angeles County.
As part of our dinner service we connect dinner guests with vital on-site and referral wellness services from housing and healthcare support to creative outlets like art, woodworking, and pottery – addressing both immediate and long-term needs.
In 2024, we served over 98,000 multi-course meals with a choice of proteins, grains, bread, salads, fruit, desserts and beverages. We rescued 2.47 million pounds of food from 192 businesses + organizations which translates so 2,064,000+ meals, that served 102 nonprofit recipients and our Community Dinner guests. With 15 service partners, we provided 3,300+ Medical, housing and other services.
How long have you been partnering with The Village?
The Village was the first organization we reached out to in 2018 when we were originally building the concept of the Community Exchange, and we have been partners since then.
What do you provide to The Village?
Our Community Exchange Program provides hand fruits, shelf stable snacks, and ready to eat food such as pizza and meals.
Why are partnerships like this important to you?
Partnerships with our recipient organizations are essential because they allow us to reach more people and ensure food gets to the communities that need it most. We believe that strengthening partnerships and sharing resources is the key to a stronger, more food-secure Los Angeles.