ATLANTIC CITY — Texas Avenue School Principal Lakecia Hyman said the school wants to be a hub for the community during times of need.

That mission has come in the form of weekly food drives every Wednesday, where families can come to the school gym to receive meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner as many struggle during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The families really need it,” Hyman said. “We’re really the hub for them, and we know that that’s important. It is a big deal, especially when you don’t know where your next meal is coming from or, if you’re laid off from your job, where your next dollar is going to come from.”

The most recent Wednesday drive included gift cards donated by Assumption Regional Catholic School in Galloway Township. For 14 years, Assumption’s Student Council has worked to identify students of families in need at Texas Avenue to help them pay for gifts. This year, the council raised more than $1,000 in gift cards for 50 families.

Texas Avenue, with the help of Atlantic City’s God Is Reaching Out Ministries and the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, also gave out coats and about 100 turkeys. For 15-year-old Christiaan Junne, the weekly drives have been a blessing, as his mother’s been out of work with an injury.

“(The pandemic) has made things very difficult,” Junne said. “Just in October, my mom had messed up her ankle, so recently, she hasn’t been able to go into work or anything. So I come over here, I get whatever I can get and whenever she gets her unemployment, we go to the store and get what we can. It’s really been a struggle during COVID.”