Christian Action Ministries has purchased a building that formerly housed an attraction to expand their Food Pantry.

The full release is below from Christian Action Ministries:
Christian Action Ministries is pleased to announce the purchase of a new property located at 2400 State Highway 165 in Branson. The building, most recently owned by Welk Properties, was previously a laser tag/arcade. The building provides 15,000 square feet
for the food pantry. 

Plans were put into motion 2 years ago to search for a facility that would accommodate the growing food insecurities in Taney County. Kevin Huddleston, Executive Director, states “As upart of our ministry’s strategic plan for 2020, the Board directed the staff to locate a suitable
location to house our Branson operations. There are few buildings of the size and type needed in the Branson area that would meet our needs and our budget. It was a true blessing when we were presented with the opportunity to acquire this facility on Highway 165. The additional
space will enable us to take advantage of free or low-cost food supplies that we presently cannot accommodate due to space requirements. The need to assist people with their food supplies is only growing going into the future. The new property will be in addition to our existing distribution sites that are located in Forsyth and downtown Branson.” 

As many struggle with inflation and still rising food costs, there's a need more than ever. “As the pandemic goes away, inflation has moved in, causing families to continue to struggle. This new facility brings more storage for perishable items, allowing Christian Action Ministries to
stock up on more fresh and healthy items,“ said Michele Dean, Assistant Director. 

The purchase comes at a perfect time as Christian Action Ministries is launching a new program, Neighbor2Neighbor. Other non-profits, and local churches will be partnering with the ministry though mobile distribution in the community. The target areas will be low income housing facilities. Partners will join together in block party style events, offering a meal, bags of food, and other assistance. The intent is to create community within those communities. 

“I feel it’s very important to be intentional about meeting the needs of those in our community with food insecurity,” says Dean. "We don’t just want to be a food pantry, we want to use food as the tool to do ministry. These N2N events will create a great opportunity to further our
mission of sharing and caring in Christ-like love.” 

Christian Action Ministries has served to combat food insecurity in Taney County, since 1984. In 2021, they provided more than 40,000 individual cases of assistance with nearly 500,000 meals provided and over 2,000,000 pounds of food distributed. Christian Action Ministries, food
pantries of Taney County, is made possible by the generous support from individuals, churches, and businesses in the community, as well as the dozens of faithful volunteers who contribute their time and talents to serve others.

Christian Action Ministries operates five days a week, providing food distribution through a drive-thru service in the former Branson Elementary school building on Sixth Street in downtown Branson and in Forsyth (Tues-Thurs) at 10726 E. Highway 76. To learn more about Christian
Action Ministries’ Mission, vision, and impact in Taney county, please visit the website: www.christianactionministries.org/