Cocoa Packs, a nonprofit organization that provides supplemental food and other support to children in the area, broke ground last week on a new 20,000-square-foot facility in Derry Township. The new location is located on East Main Street on property owned by the Milton Hershey School Trust near Grace United Methodist church.
The nonprofit, which was founded in 2015, says it assists more than 1,300 children year-round in central Pennsylvania, and officials said that the model it has developed provides the capacity to assist many more children. But, they said that the operational and logistical challenges presented by currently operating various aspects of services from numerous locations are not sustainably efficient.
The nonprofit’s drive-thru location, warehouse/clothing closet and food rescue, all operate out of three different locations in the Hershey area.
One of the locations Cocoa Packs currently operates from is for weekly drive-thru distribution. That operation has been forced outside year-round due to pandemic-related restrictions and the volume of assistance being provided. Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, the organization said it has seen an increase in enrollment of nearly 300%.
“Our vision for the next chapter of Cocoa Packs is a space where we can ensure all of the children we assist have what they need to succeed in a safe and handicap accessible place by providing all services under one roof,” Cocoa Packs founder and president, Christine Drexler said in a news release. “This facility will also enable us to maximize the impact of the thousands of volunteers and volunteer groups who faithfully serve our organization.”
The new facility will house all of Cocoa Packs operations, which will include warehouse space for assembly of food packs, allow for distribution to children multiple days each week, provide access to the Cocoa Packs Clothing Closet, expand the Cocoa Packs Food Rescue program, add additional educational programming in a teaching kitchen and café, and host a learning center and a lending library. The property will also have a garden to provide opportunities for children to plant and grow fresh produce for distribution.
The public phase of the Cocoa Packs Capital Campaign began on June 30. Cocoa Packs said that the Hershey Company will donate $500,000 to the project. Cocoa Packs has also received three other donations of $100,000.
The land for the facility will be acquired through a long-term lease, with an option to purchase from the Milton Hershey School Trust.
Matt Luttrell of Thynk Design is the architect and JEM Group is building the facility.
Want more stories like this? Pick the topics and places you want to read more about by signing up for PennLive Custom Alerts, a free tool to deliver more of the coverage you want, right to your inbox.
Ad Choices