November 2026 · 5 min read

Veterans Day Is One Week Away (Wed, Nov 11): Register Now for a Free Grocery Box at Frost Bank Center

Veterans Day is Wednesday, November 11, 2026 — exactly one week from today. Most Veterans Day food help is walk-in on the day itself, but the biggest grocery help this year is not: registration is open now, and it is required, for a one-day drive-thru distribution of 1,000 free grocery boxes for veterans and military families connected to Joint Base San Antonio. There are only 1,000 boxes — here is how to claim one, what else is on this week's calendar, and where to eat today.

Nov 11 at Frost Bank Center: 1,000 grocery boxes — register now

Feed the Force — Mercy Chefs' program for military families, presented in San Antonio with USAA and Spurs Sports & Entertainment — will hand out 1,000 Family Grocery Boxes on Wednesday, November 11, 2026, 1:00–4:00 PM, in a free drive-thru distribution at the Frost Bank Center, 1 Frost Bank Center Drive, San Antonio, TX 78219. Each box holds groceries to help a family prepare up to 50 meals at home.

• Who it's for: veterans and military families connected to Joint Base San Antonio — Fort Sam Houston, Randolph, and Lackland. It is not open to the general public.
• Registration is required in advance — there is no walk-up line. Registered families receive their pickup instructions by email.
• How to register: the sign-up is being shared through Joint Base San Antonio channels and the event flyer; the program page is Mercy Chefs — Feed the Force. If you're connected to JBSA, don't wait until Nov 11 — when the 1,000 boxes are claimed, registration closes.

Also on Veterans Day — the walk-in help

Restaurant free meals for veterans on Nov 11 are in our Free Veterans Day Meals guide — Chili's, Golden Corral, Red Robin and Freddy's are confirmed for 2026 so far, with proof-of-service details for each. And because Nov 11 is a federal holiday, our What's Open on Veterans Day guide lists which regular pantries and meal sites hold their Wednesday hours that day. For help beyond the holiday: free food for veterans and free food for military families, all year.

This Saturday, Nov 7: Food4SA Turkey Collection at H-E-B College Park

November is Food4SA month at the San Antonio Food Bank — the annual November drive that stocks the holiday distributions. Its first Turkey Collection is this Saturday, November 7, 10:00 AM–2:00 PM at H-E-B College Park, 7330 N Loop 1604 W, San Antonio, TX 78249: buy a turkey or drop off nonperishable food on the spot, and it goes toward a San Antonio family's holiday table. Can't make Saturday? The collection repeats Saturday, November 14 at H-E-B Leon Springs (24165 I-10, Suite 300, San Antonio, TX 78257) and Sunday, November 22 at all area H-E-B Plus! stores. Food4SA bags can also be picked up at the Food Bank itself, and nonperishable drop-offs are accepted at Security Service Federal Credit Union branches. And if you're the neighbor who needs the food this year, start with the holiday meals page — that's where the holiday dinners and distributions land as they're verified.

Need food today? Wednesday, Nov 4 — 33 places serve on Wednesdays

Our directory lists 33 places with Wednesday serving hours. Four of them serve on Wednesdays only:

Real Life Christian Assistance — River City Community Church — 16765 Lookout Rd, Selma, TX 78154 (210-490-5262)
Free groceries every Wednesday, 8:00–10:00 AM. No pre-registration — enter through Gate B from Lookout Road.

Converse First Baptist Church Food Pantry — 9162 FM 78, Converse, TX 78109 (210-658-2891)
Wednesdays, 9:00 AM–12:00 PM.

Oxford UMC Food Pantry — 9739 Huebner Rd, San Antonio, TX 78240 (210-696-0192)
Wednesdays, 1:00–2:00 PM — a one-hour window, so go on time.

Fellowship Meal — 5114 Seguin Rd, San Antonio, TX 78219 (no phone listed)
A free hot evening meal, Wednesdays 6:00–8:00 PM.

Weekday regulars open today include Christian Assistance Ministry — Northwest Campus — 5084 DeZavala, San Antonio, TX 78249, Monday–Thursday 9:00 AM–2:00 PM (210-697-5771); San Antonio Food Bank — Client Services — 5200 Historic Old Hwy 90, San Antonio, TX 78227, Monday–Friday 8:00 AM–5:00 PM (210-431-8326); Catholic Charities — Guadalupe Community Center — 1801 W Cesar E Chavez Blvd, San Antonio, TX 78207, drive-through Monday–Friday 8:30 AM–5:00 PM (210-226-6178); and Presa Community Center Emergency Food Pantry — 3721 S Presa St, San Antonio, TX 78210, Monday–Friday 8:30 AM–5:00 PM (210-532-5295).

Hot meals today: Faith Kitchen at Haven for Hope (78207) serves three free hot meals every day of the year — breakfast 7:00–8:00 AM, lunch 11:30 AM–12:30 PM, dinner 5:00–6:00 PM, open to all (210-220-2100). Corazón Day Center (78215) serves a hot lunch 12:00–1:00 PM, Monday–Friday (210-238-5958), and Christian Assistance Ministry hands out sack lunches 9:00–11:00 AM, Monday–Saturday (210-223-4099). Tonight, Communities Under the Bridge serves a hot dinner 6:00–7:00 PM, as it does every evening (210-569-4026).

The full Wednesday list — all 33 places with set hours, plus weekly pantries — is on our free food on Wednesday page, and the find food map searches by your ZIP.

Need food right now?

The Open Right Now page checks today's hours for you, and the four-question food quiz points you to the places that fit your situation. Prefer a person? Call 2-1-1 any time — free, confidential, 24/7.

Sources: the Nov. 11 Feed the Force distribution (date, time, Frost Bank Center, 1,000 boxes, advance registration required, Joint Base San Antonio eligibility, pickup instructions by email) is from the event partners' announcements — Spurs Sports & Entertainment, USAA and Mercy Chefs (late October 2026); box contents (groceries for up to 50 meals) are from Mercy Chefs' Feed the Force program page (mercychefs.com/feed-the-force). Food4SA Turkey Collection dates and places are from the San Antonio Food Bank (Nov. 2, 2026). Wednesday serving days, hours, and phone numbers are from the San Antonio Free Meals verified directory (132 listings), checked against each organization's own page. Hours change — call before you go. Checked November 4, 2026.