In 1971 a group of people from the Archdiocese of Philadelphia began the work of feeding children and those in need. It was called the Cardinal’s Commission on Human Relations’ Community Food Program. The Community Food Program was responsible for the pickup and distribution of the collected food to 30 area food cupboards. As the need for emergency food continued to increase, the Community Food Program created a year-round calendar of food collection opportunities to meet growing needs.
The Community Food Program challenges all people to make a difference to others in the community experiencing a food emergency by raising awareness about the needs of people in our area and inviting people to put their concern into action by organizing food collections. NDS continues today to distribute food equaling over 2,000,000 meals to over 50 feeding sites throughout the five county Philadelphia area.