How Community Partnerships Support Food Access Across Southern Nevada

The Just One Project works with Clark County schools, senior housing communities, Las Vegas hospitality businesses, and nonprofit organizations to make fresh groceries and prepared meals available throughout Southern Nevada.

Each partnership serves a different purpose. Schools and residential communities provide neighborhood distribution locations. Hospitality partners contribute prepared food that can be safely recovered and redistributed. Nonprofit receiving partners help extend the reach of those meals to people served through their own organizations.

Together, these relationships support the infrastructure behind our Food For All programs, allowing us to serve communities through multiple locations and methods of distribution.

Bringing Food Assistance Into Southern Nevada Neighborhoods

The location of a food assistance program can influence whether someone is able to use it.

Traveling across the Las Vegas Valley to pick up groceries may require transportation, time away from work, or assistance from another person. For older adults and households with limited transportation, the location and frequency of a distribution can be especially important.

Our Pop Up & Give Mobile Market program addresses some of these challenges by bringing groceries to participating Clark County School District (CCSD) locations and senior housing communities.

These partnerships make it possible to distribute food through established neighborhood locations rather than relying exclusively on our headquarters on North Decatur Boulevard.

Working With Clark County Schools

The Just One Project partners with CCSD to host monthly Pop Up & Give distributions at participating school sites across Southern Nevada.

Schools provide recognizable community locations where residents can access groceries through scheduled walk-up or drive-through distributions.

These events are open to community members without an appointment, with groceries available while supplies last.

CCSD also partners with TJOP to provide No-Cost Community Markets at select school locations. Those markets operate by appointment and have enrollment requirements specific to each site.

The distinction is important because these programs serve different needs. Pop Up & Give provides scheduled neighborhood distributions, while the No-Cost Community Market offers registered participants a monthly grocery-shopping experience.

By working with the school district, we can offer food assistance through locations already connected to the communities they serve.

Reaching Older Adults Through Senior Housing Partnerships

The Just One Project also works with senior housing communities to provide groceries closer to where older residents live.

Pop Up & Give distributions take place at participating senior residential properties throughout Southern Nevada.

For residents who have difficulty traveling to a grocery store or another food assistance location, an on-site distribution can reduce the transportation required to access food.

Senior housing partnerships also provide an established point of communication. Residents can contact their property’s management office to learn whether their community participates and how to receive groceries.

These distributions complement our other programs for older adults, including Senior Nutrition & Wellness and Meals on Wheels.

Each program has its own eligibility requirements and delivery or distribution procedures.

The combination of neighborhood distributions and specialized senior food programs allows TJOP to provide different forms of assistance based on the circumstances of the people we serve.

Working With Las Vegas Hospitality Partners to Recover Prepared Food

Southern Nevada’s hospitality industry prepares substantial quantities of food for conventions, conferences, meetings, and other large events.

When quality prepared food remains unserved, recovering it safely requires coordination between the business providing the food and the organization receiving it.

The Just One Project’s Food Rescue Alliance establishes that process.

Developed with founding partner The Venetian Resort Las Vegas, and expanded through a partnership with Caesars Entertainment, the Alliance recovers fully prepared, unserved food from hospitality operations.

Food is safely packed and transported to the Food Rescue Alliance Kitchen at TJOP headquarters. Our team and volunteers portion it into ready-to-eat servings while following established food safety procedures.

The meals are then distributed through TJOP programs and a network of nonprofit receiving partners.

This work requires coordination at every stage, from identifying recoverable food to arranging transportation, preparation, and distribution.

Hospitality partnerships provide access to food that has already been prepared. TJOP provides the operational system needed to recover and redistribute it safely.

Expanding Participation in Food Rescue

The Food Rescue Alliance also offers opportunities for hotels, restaurants, food distributors, grocers, suppliers, producers, and food brands to participate.

Businesses may explore one-time or ongoing food donation partnerships, depending on the type of food available and the requirements of the program.

Establishing these relationships helps create a more consistent process for identifying food that can be recovered and putting it to use within the community.

Nonprofit Receiving Partners Extend the Reach of Prepared Meals

Recovering prepared food is only one part of the Food Rescue Alliance.

The meals must also reach organizations equipped to distribute them to the people they serve.

The Just One Project works with a network of nonprofit receiving partners throughout Southern Nevada. These organizations serve a variety of populations and community needs, including veterans, older adults, people experiencing housing instability, and individuals participating in recovery and supportive service programs.

Receiving partners listed by TJOP include organizations such as U.S.VETS, Nevada Homeless Alliance, The Shade Tree, and Foundation for Recovery.

Each organization has its own programs and relationships with the community.

Through this network, prepared meals recovered from hospitality partners can reach additional service locations without requiring every recipient to visit TJOP headquarters.

The receiving-partner model also allows organizations to incorporate available meals into their existing services.

For TJOP, these relationships expand the reach of food recovery. For participating organizations, they provide another potential source of prepared meals for the people they serve.

What Makes a Food Assistance Partnership Effective?

A successful partnership depends on the practical details of providing a reliable service.

For a school hosting a mobile market, that includes coordinating distribution space, schedules, and access for participating households.

For a senior housing community, it includes communicating with residents and organizing a distribution that works within the property.

For a hospitality business, it requires food safety procedures, transportation coordination, and a process for identifying food that can be donated.

For a nonprofit receiving partner, it means having the capacity to accept and distribute prepared meals appropriately.

These responsibilities differ, but they contribute to the same goal: getting available food to people through a process that is organized, safe, and accessible.

Our team works with participating organizations to coordinate these operational requirements so that each partnership can function as part of an established food assistance program.

Different Partners, Different Opportunities to Contribute

Organizations interested in supporting food access in Southern Nevada can explore several types of involvement with The Just One Project.

Businesses with suitable surplus food may be able to participate in the Food Rescue Alliance.

Community organizations and eligible residential properties can inquire about opportunities related to food distribution.

Companies can also organize employee volunteer groups to support food markets, grocery packing, deliveries, and other TJOP activities.

Financial contributions and sponsorships help sustain the programs and operations that make this work possible.

The appropriate form of participation depends on the organization’s resources, capabilities, and the needs of our existing programs.

Our team can discuss potential opportunities and determine whether a proposed partnership aligns with current program requirements.

Building a Connected Food Assistance Network in Southern Nevada

The Just One Project’s Food For All programs operate through several forms of food assistance, from monthly grocery markets to mobile distributions and prepared meal recovery.

Community partnerships help determine where those services can operate and how far they can reach.

Our relationships with CCSD and senior housing communities create neighborhood access points. Hospitality businesses contribute recoverable prepared food. Nonprofit receiving partners help distribute meals through their own community programs.

Each relationship adds capacity to an established system of food assistance.

As we continue serving Southern Nevada, these partnerships remain an important part of making fresh groceries and nutritious meals available through locations and programs that reflect the needs of our community.

Explore Partnership Opportunities With The Just One Project

The Just One Project welcomes conversations with businesses and community organizations interested in supporting food access across Southern Nevada.

Learn more about our Food For All programs, explore the Food Rescue Alliance, or visit our Get Involved page to explore opportunities to contribute.