Photos were provided courtesy of Deanna Gordon.
Three years ago, Dallas-based mobile app TangoTab launched their signature community engagement event to end hunger, Feed The City. To date, 18 events occur around the country on a regular basis and have provided nearly 1 million meals as a result.
Feed The City is a community event that brings together people of all different ages and backgrounds to help feed their fellow neighbors in need. Do you want to know which Feed the City event is the biggest? That’s right… Frisco, Texas!
Every third Saturday at City Works restaurant at The Star in Frisco, hundreds of volunteers show up at 8:30 the morning to assemble sandwiches, snacks, and fruit, which are then immediately distributed to North Texas residents in need through charity partners.
Tap an App
The real engine behind the Feed the City initiative is TangoTab, a mobile app that partners with restaurants around the country. Users of the app simply tap “check-in” on the app at participating restaurants and TangoTab feeds a person in need locally. In total, TangoTab has fed approximately 2.5 million people.
The Dallas Cowboys FEUD
Dallas Cowboys’ Center Travis Frederick has been a brand ambassador for TangoTab for over three years. This past season he was nominated by his team for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award for his work through his Tackling Hunger Foundation and with TangoTab.
Now, Frederick is getting his teammates involved, challenging Byron Jones, Kavon Frazier, and Geoff Swaim to see who can feed the most people in need. Each player will lead a different event in the North Texas area over the next month and will encourage people to join the effort.
The events kick off with Byron Jones on March 17 at the home of the Dallas Cowboys, The Star in Frisco. Kavon Frazier will host his event at Bottled Blonde in Deep Ellum on Saturday, March 31, while Geoff Swaim will be launching a new event in Prosper on April 7.
To cap off the competition, Travis Frederick will be at Bar Louie on Saturday, April 14. Between the four events, it’s estimated that over 50,000 meals will be made and distributed to North Texas residents in need.
This is a great way to bring the community together, have fun and work to solve/educate people about a social issue,” said Nick Marino Jr. the Director of Social Change for TangoTab. “These players leave it all on the field and it’s inspiring to see them leave it all in their community. These guys can reach so many people and for them to use their voice to make a difference… It’s powerful.”
The event is open to all ages and to sign up, you just show up. People are asked to bring bread, meat, cheese, chips and small oranges (Halos, Cuties, tangerines).
Challenge Accepted…Game ON!
With regard to the feud, the players have a LOT to say to one another! Travis Frederick has a few challenging works for his teammates, while Kavon Frazier is firmly convinced Deep Ellum will win the bet. Geoff Swaim believes new kid on the block Prosper will pull an upset, and as a Frisco resident, I’m on Team Byron Jones…
I actually feel bad for Travis, Geoff and Byron. They really think they have a chance in this… And that’s actually what I love about our feud. Our passion to compete is going to help feed tens of thousands of people right here in our community and there are a ton of winners in this. However, we all know my event is going to feed the most. I’ll be ‘deep in the heart of Dallas’ in Deep Ellum and we are going to go to work! – Kavon Frazier
I am super excited to be a part of the Feuding Over Feeding campaign,” said Travis. “Our hope is that with four different Dallas Cowboys players coming to four different areas of the city, we can really bring people out and make a difference in the community. Also, as professional football players, when the season is out, we look for any and every reason to compete. I have no doubt in my mind that Feed the City: Dallas will prevail. Byron, Geoff, and Kavon don’t stand a chance! – Travis Frederick
I am very excited to be able to participate in Feuding Over Feeding. It is a great opportunity to help positively impact different areas of our city. I’m not sure if the other guys know what they are in for, but Feed the City: Prosper is ready to show em! – Geoff Swaim
I’m looking forward to competing against my teammates through Feuding Over Feeding,” said Byron. “Let’s come together and make a difference in our community by feeding those who are in need. And remember Frisco, this is a competition… Let’s show these others cities how it’s done! – Byron Jones
More About YOUR local Frisco Feed the City Event
Frisco resident Dion Harrison serves as host of Feed the City Frisco events at City Works. Dion says City Works has been a great partner. The two-story restaurant with multiple patios can accommodate nearly 600 people, and they’re very supportive across the board. During the event, music is pumping and it’s all hands on deck until the last sandwich has been assembled.
Frisco has been an awesome community for TangoTab’s Feed the City event,” said Dion. “It’s a family-oriented event that matches with Frisco’s love for community service. Parents from all over DFW bring their kids to teach them the value of community service, and it can be loads of fun. Frisco provides many events and opportunities like this so the support for TangoTab’s Feed the City just keeps growing. We have teenagers who show up early on a Saturday morning eager to help; younger kids that smile and dance while making sandwiches; and happy parents that their family has turned a couple hours on a Saturday morning into thousands of meals for those in need.”
While you’ll find Dion supporting TangoTab and Feed the City events every single weekend, his dedication is entirely in a volunteer capacity. He first discovered TangoTab on the site Random Acts of Kindness. He attended a Feed the City event and was impressed by the immediate and direct impact it has on the lives of local residents who are hungry.
Naturally, he wanted to learn more about the distribution of the meals to better understand the stewardship of the organization. He accompanied event volunteers to the partner charity who would distribute the meals and met a sixteen year old boy that he’ll never forget.
The young man shared that he is purposely failing his math courses so that he’ll be required to attend summer school. Why would a kid who is actually highly gifted in Math do such a thing?
When he’s enrolled in school, he’s eligible to receive meals through district programs. He recognizes that failing a course will impact his GPA and by extension his choices for college, but it’s a matter of hunger and health for him.
While Feed the City events enable us to feed thousands of people on a Saturday,” said Dion, “it’s even more important that we raise awareness of the ongoing hunger problem in North Texas. 1 in 6 people goes hungry every day in DFW. Organizations we partner with, such as Samaritan Inn in McKinney, and Salvation Army in Dallas, are equipped to care for hundreds of people, yet they have to turn hundreds more away.
Engaging more people in the cause is critically important, and will happen as we expand awareness of the TangoTab app. Every time someone checks in at a restaurant via the TangoTab app, someone receives a meal. It’s that simple.”
It was just last October when TangoTab hosted their first Feed the City event in Frisco. 300 volunteers of all ages and backgrounds showed up ready to help their neighbors. The event has grown consistently since then, with more than 500 volunteers expected at the March event.
At last month’s Frisco event, the rainy, cold weather didn’t stop more than 500 volunteers from coming together to make 6,892 meals for people in need. Mark your calendars…and join in the movement to Feed the City!
