Orlando VA Healthcare System and Soldiers’ Angels Expand Food Support with New Veterans Food Pantry

Following a soft opening Sept. 24, Soldiers’ Angels and the OVAHCS Center for Development and Civic Engagement (CDCE) will host an official ribbon-cutting ceremony for the pantry Oct. 22 at 9:15 a.m.

The pantry is available to Veterans served by the Orlando VA Healthcare System who are in need of food assistance. During each biweekly distribution event, up to 60 Veteran families will be served.

Unlike a traditional prepackaged food distribution, the pantry allows Veterans to select groceries based on their individual preferences, dietary needs and food restrictions. Both perishable and non-perishable food items are available.

“This partnership is about making sure Veterans facing food insecurity have another place to turn for support,” said Cristina Mercado Acevedo, Chief, CDCE. “Just as importantly, the pantry gives Veterans the opportunity to choose foods that work for them and their families while being treated with dignity and respect.”

The Veterans Food Pantry represents a collaborative effort between Soldiers’ Angels and OVAHCS CDCE to address food insecurity among Veterans while connecting them with support through their local VA healthcare system.

Food pantry distributions are scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on select Thursdays through Dec. 17. Upcoming dates include Oct. 8, Oct. 22, Nov. 5, Nov. 19, Dec. 3 and Dec. 17. The program is expected to expand from biweekly to weekly distributions in the future.

Veterans interested in participating can register through Soldiers’ Angels at SoldiersAngels.org/GetFood.

Veterans interested in additional information, or community members interested in volunteering, may contact OVAHCS CDCE at vhaorlvoluntaary@va.gov or .

To learn more about the facilities and services offered by the OVAHCS, please visit: VA Orlando Health Care | Veterans Affairs, subscribe to receive email updates by clicking here, like us on Facebook at: Orlando VA Healthcare System | Facebook, follow us on Instagram at: Orlando VA Healthcare System (@ovahcs) • Instagram photos and videos or on Twitter at: @OVAHCS / Twitter. 

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Established in October 2006, the Orlando VA Healthcare System (OVAHCS) was designated a 1a facility (most complex) in 2021, with more than 5,660 employees and an annual budget of $2.4B and serves more than 149,000 Veterans in Central Florida. The Orlando VA Medical Center at Lake Nona provides outpatient, inpatient, and emergency services. Lake Nona’s 65-acre medical campus encompasses 134 acute inpatient beds, providing complex Medical/Surgical/Mental Health specialty care, advanced diagnostic services, and a large multispecialty outpatient clinic, as well as a 120-bed Community Living Center, two Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Programs/Domiciliaries (60-beds located at the Lake Nona Campus and 56 beds at the Lake Baldwin Campus). Outpatient services are provided at a Health Care Center in Viera, Multispecialty Community-Based Outpatient Clinics in Daytona Beach, Lake Baldwin, and five Community-Based Outpatient Clinics located in Clermont, Kissimmee, Deltona, Palm Bay and Tavares.