Meeting Rising Need with Smarter Solutions

The HMC truck keeps rolling five days a week, picking up donated food that eventually makes its way into the homes of thousands of Omaha families. Each week, roughly 65,000 pounds of food pass through the Heart Ministry Center warehouse—an effort powered by more than 7,000 volunteers a year and coordinated by a small but determined Food Distribution Team. As the demand for food has grown, systems and processes that have supported the Food Distribution program for 13 years needed to be updated.

Running more food-pick-up routes meant added time on the road, increased wear and maintenance on the Heart Ministry Center truck, and more hours of loading and unloading at every stop. Even as more food was secured, the space to store and handle it all remained limited. The question was pressing: how could the Heart meet higher demand without the enormous cost of expanding the warehouse itself?

With the guidance of warehouse management consultants, Heart Ministry Center explored practical, cost-effective fixes that balanced resources with the realities of rising demand. The solution came in three key investments: a larger truck, additional warehouse shelving, and a forklift to handle heavier loads.

This summer, our new 2025 International MV607 truck rolled up to a community retail partner’s warehouse, its dock-height lift gate transforming the daily grind of unloading. When their warehouse team saw the new Heart Ministry Center truck arrive, they applauded, knowing firsthand how much intense labor it would relieve. At the same time, new shelving, stacked above existing units, will soon make better use of vertical space in our warehouse. A new forklift will allow safe handling of heavy non-perishable items at higher storage levels. Thanks to the generosity of our donors, we can increase our process efficiency.

These changes mean more food can be brought in with each truck run, quickly stored, and efficiently moved into the hands of neighbors who need it. Together, these improvements to our pantry operations are making it possible for Heart Ministry Center to keep pace with a growing community need and to do so in a way that is sustainable, affordable, and provides dignity for all.