United Food Bank partners with more than 120 food pantries, mobile food truck markets, and hot meal sites across Arizona, changing lives by providing essential food support. They believe food security is only the first step in unlocking a greater pursuit of purpose and potential.

When United Food Bank needed financing to purchase a new property, they turned to Gateway Bank in Mesa. The partnership grew from there, and together, we’re helping every dollar the food bank raises go as far as it can.

“It’s more than just a checking account and a line of credit. It’s about having tailored banking solutions that help us manage our cash flow, grow our dollars, and make them more efficient to feed more people.” – Jason Reed, President and CEO of United Food Bank

Banking locally makes your life easier and your community better. To learn more and start the process of partnering with Gateway Bank, contact us today.

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Transcript:

Scott Morris, Gateway Bank:

I’m Scott Morris. I’m the Market President with Gateway Commercial Bank. And I’m lucky to be here today with Jason, the President of the United Food Bank. United Food Bank is more than just a customer of Gateway’s. They’re community partners. And the work that they’ve done here in the community is amazing. I was really excited to come here, tour their warehouse today, and see a little bit about what makes them amazing.

The story of the relationship between the food bank and Gateway Bank is a long one. It goes back actually before we were even organized. An old neighbor of mine was Dave Richins, who was president for a time here at the food bank. That’s how we met, and our president sat on your board for quite some time.
Then when the need arose for you — or actually opportunity — to purchase another property, a property that’s well known in the community, we were really excited that you reached out to us and that we were able to provide that financing. So it’s been a wonderful partnership.

Jason Reed, United Food Bank:

We appreciate you guys supporting us and it’s been an honor to be part of such a neat group that has really built a legacy of awesome service in the community over so many years. So we’re grateful for that partnership for sure. You knowwe can’t do our work here without the generosity of the community, and every dollar matters, so the expertise that you bring us from financials, the strategic guidance you give us, as well as the connections, the support, and partnership — those are the things that help make our mission work each and every day.

Scott Morris, Gateway Bank:

Thank you. We appreciate it.

I’ll tell you what’s amazing to me when you talk about every dollar mattering. We help out with a lot of nonprofits, and I was able to see what you guys have been able to do with the little amount of money that you have and the impact you’ve made. It’s remarkable, especially during Covid [pandemic], when so many were in need. You guys were able to mobilize your force, your staff, your people, your infrastructure, and serve such a huge amount of people. To me that was one of the silver linings of Covid was to see groups like the United Food Bank step up and use the assets and resources they have to serve so many.

Tell me a little bit about those numbers. I remember them talking about the amount of food that was rolling through and how you guys were able to feed so many people.

Jason Reed, United Food Bank:

Yeah, I mean the job of the food bank really is to source large quantities of food — tens of millions of pounds of food each and every year — and then we try to sort it out and get it to those who need it.

So during the Covid pandemic, we were moving more than 26 million pounds of food on an annual basis. You saw those huge lines of cars and big parking lots driving through to get that food. This community, along with the city of Mesa and many other partners, helped to step up to make that happen.

Today there’s actually more people. Now, those lines haven’t gone away. They just look a little different. Like last month, just in August, United Food Bank and its partners supported more than 127,000 people. Just August! That’s not a whole year — that’s just August.

We’re working and we’re grateful for your support, too, because we needed a line of credit to purchase a place where we could expand to meet the growing needs of our community.

Scott Morris, Gateway Bank:

Wow, talk about making a difference. I mean, those are big numbers when when you boil it down to actual individuals and families and people. It’s really tough to measure the impact that you guys have had on the community. That’s got to feel great every day to come to work and feel like you’re doing something that truly matters.

Jason Reed, United Food Bank:

Yeah, I think that’s right. So, I think we’re certainly grateful for that. Again, it takes a community to do that together. We work with so many different partners, and having a great banking partner helps us do that, too.

So, it’s more than just a checking account. We talked about the line of credit, but it’s also about just having tailored banking solutions that really help us to not just manage our cash flow, [but also to] invest the money we have. Because every dollar that we make…we can grow those dollars through investments, or every dollar we can make more efficient here, that’s another person that’s fed. And so, those are the types of things that we’re grateful for our partnership for.

Scott Morris, Gateway Bank:

Love it. That’s fantastic.

Hopefully other communities are seeing the model that you guys have built, and they’re trying to duplicate, take some of your ideas and best practices, and spread that across so many different communities here. Because every single place you go has people in need, and it would be awesome to take all of the ideas and strategies that you’ve been able to put into place and use those to benefit other communities.

Jason Reed, United Food Bank:
Yeah, that’s right. And I think that’s a lot of the strategic guidance, and you mentioned James Christensen, your [Gateway Bank’s] president, too. He’s been a long-time, trusted adviser to us as well. He’s also helped us to to think through our risk management, our financial procedures, all those types of things that we can also then translate toward helping others to do that — and doing it at a greater scale.