GRCFW Becomes Owensboro Food Hub as First 27,000 Pounds of Protein Reach Local Pantries
The new public name reflects work already underway: food is reaching families well before the organization's warehouse opens
OWENSBORO, KY — November 10, 2026 — Green River Community Food Warehouse (GRCFW) today introduced Owensboro Food Hub as its public name, marking the change with its first large-scale distribution: 27,033 pounds of protein, purchased with donated funds, delivered to 10 Community Partners in a single morning.
The organization's legal name, board, leadership, mission and 501(c)(3) status are unchanged.
Food is moving now
On October 29, the Owensboro Food Hub distributed 2,336 cases of bologna to 10 Community Partners at no cost to them. The Food Hub purchased the food at a discount from Specialty Foods Group in Owensboro, using donated funds raised above the organization's $4.1 million campaign goal.
Last month, the organization announced it had raised $4.2 million toward that goal. The campaign pays to buy and renovate the Food Hub's future facility and covers its first three years of operations. Money raised above the goal was committed to one purpose: acquiring food. This distribution is that commitment in action.
Trucks were loaded at Specialty Foods by 7:15 a.m. By 11 a.m., partners had received their preordered food at New Life Church in scheduled 15-minute appointments, using the Food Hub's order and fulfillment system. Community Partners distribute the food free of charge through their own pantries, kitchens and programs. The limited distribution pilot partners are Bellevue Baptist, Church Alive, CrossRoads, God's House of Hope, the Help Office, Just People, New Life Church, Ohio County Food Pantry, The Salvation Army and Third Baptist. The Food Hub intends to include more partners in future distributions. Its network has grown to more than 25 Community Partners and continues to expand.
The distribution ran on community help. Two of those partners, Ohio County Food Pantry and God's House of Hope, provided temperature-controlled trucks, Ohio County Food Pantry volunteers ran the forklifts, and more than 50 volunteers, including about 45 Kentucky Wesleyan College student-athletes and their coaches, moved pallets and carried cases by hand. OBryan Implement stored Owensboro Food Hub's forklifts.
The Salvation Army put its share to work right away. "On the very day we picked up the bologna, we began adding it to the grocery orders given out from our food pantry," said Captain Victor Haworth, corps officer of The Salvation Army's Owensboro Corps. On a recent Friday, the Army also added a loaf of bread and two pounds of bologna to each sack meal it handed out from its canteen. "Our partnership with the Owensboro Food Hub will be key in our joint efforts to eliminate food insecurity in Owensboro," Haworth said.
Every partner reports monthly how much food it distributes or how many people it serves, so Owensboro Food Hub and the Food Security Council of Owensboro / Daviess County can measure impact as it grows. A second distribution of increased size is planned for early December.
Why the new name
GRCFW will move into the Clark Distributing building on East 4th Street once Clark relocates. In the meantime, the work has already started, and the name no longer fits.
"For years we've described ourselves by a building we can't move into yet," said Steve Innes, founder and executive director. "What we actually do is connect food that's available with the pantries and kitchens that get it to families. That isn't a warehouse. It's a hub. We're calling ourselves what we already are."
The organization describes its model as a wheel: Community Partners are the spokes, reaching families in their own neighborhoods, and the Owensboro Food Hub keeps them supplied. Once the facility opens, cold, frozen and dry storage will let the Food Hub accept truckloads of perishable food that currently bypass the region.
What stays the same
- The legal entity, Green River Community Food Warehouse, Inc., its 501(c)(3) status and the tax-deductibility of gifts
- Leadership, the board and all commitments to donors, grantors and partners
- The mission and service area
Donation receipts and legal documents will continue to carry the legal name.
Every dollar buys food
With the facility and its early operating costs funded, new gifts go directly to acquiring food. The Food Hub accepts donated food from manufacturers, farms, grocers and other donors, and it can also buy food in bulk at a discount. Each Community Partner receives its share at no cost.
Two recent grants will go toward acquiring food: $50,000 from the Lift a Life Foundation and $29,000 from Atmos Energy.
"Sourcing food is our job," Innes said. "Suppliers get one organization to work with and one order to fill, and our partners can focus on what they do best: serving their neighbors. We'll always welcome donated food. And because we can buy in bulk at a discount, every dollar someone gives puts more food on a table. Now that people have seen what this can do, we can do it again, and do more of it."
Learn more
The Owensboro Food Hub's new website is live at owensborofoodhub.org, and grcfw.org now redirects there. Follow the Food Hub's Facebook page at Owensboro Food Hub. Businesses, foundations and individuals can give as Mission Supporters; pantries, churches, schools and other food distributors can apply to become Community Partners. Volunteers can join the interest list for the next distribution.