Food Fort

October & November 2025

Learn

Here in Lincoln, we are very lucky to have such an amazing community, full of generous and supportive people from many different walks of life. This does not mean, however, that our community is immune to issues that affect the rest of the country as well. Local data illustrates some of the pressing challenges when it comes to some of the most basic needs within our community—particularly among our youngest neighbors.

In 2022, 19% of children in Lancaster County experienced food insecurity. Overall, 13% of residents faced food insecurity. Further, almost half of all students enrolled at Lincoln Public Schools are eligible for the free/reduced meal program and 13% of all Lincoln households are enrolled in the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. These figures show that even though we are very lucky to live in such an amazing community, access to food is still a significant issue, and also remind us that behind every one of these statistics is a child—hungry, uncertain, and needing our support.


Enter Food Fort, a local nonprofit grounded in the belief that nourishing children nurtures both bodies and futures. Founded in 2016 by Michaela Akridge, Food Fort seeks to create meaningful relationships with youth residing in under-resourced areas of our community through programs that address some of their most basic needs. Each week, Food Fort travels to three neighborhoods in Lincoln to offer free meals, educational resources, academic support, and fresh produce. Through these programs, Food Fort creates meaningful and lasting relationships with these youth, many of whom do not have a consistent adult presence in their lives during after school hours. Food Fort’s mission is to provide “more than just a meal,” by providing love, respect, and consistency to these youth on a weekly basis in addition to addressing their basic needs.

PRay

  • Food Fort children still in foster placements with Food Fort staff/team
  • Expansion plans would be God's will, with him leading the next steps
  • For the multiple youth who have been transferred to group homes in Omaha
  • Three new scholarship recipients starting college this fall

Give

Financial donations to Food Fort can be given through the Outreach Focus envelope or online HERE.

Serve

This fall we are again partnering with Food Fort to create Thanksgiving baskets for some of the families Food Fort serves on a regular basis! In addition to collecting these items, we are also participating in a Thrivent challenge to collect 500 items! If we collect all these items, Thrivent will donate an additional $500 to Food Fort! We will work with students at Trinity Lutheran School to collect all 500 items. Please check out the board in the Narthex to find out how to participate in this challenge!