$65,000 in grants will be presented at a Mobile Kitchen site serving hundreds of families in the North Clackamas School District without other summer feeding options
PORTLAND, Ore. (July 25, 2014) – On Monday, Walmart will present St. Vincent De Paul Portland Council and Clackamas Service Center with $65,000 in grant funding to support their community feeding programs. Funds from these grants will support St. Vincent De Paul Portland Council’s purchase of a new Mobile Kitchen and the ongoing operations of Clackamas Service Center’s community nutrition program.
The check presentation will take place at the Town Center Station apartments, across from the Clackamas Town Center, where the organizations will co-host the second week of their Extended Summer Feeding Pilot Project that aims to address summer hunger needs of students in the North Clackamas School District.
“For many families, free and reduced lunch programs at schools are their safety net,” said Ali Packard, St. Vincent De Paul director of development. “During the last month and a half of summer, there are no in-school feeding options in this part of town. We are leveraging the strength of our partnerships with non-profit and community organizations to try something new and bring food right to the families that need it most.”
If last week was any indication, this program is already a great success—serving more than 150 families in its first outreach effort. According to Clackamas Service Center, which serves more than 13,000 individuals in the county each year, innovative programming such as this pilot project would not happen without the financial support of groups such as the Walmart Foundation.
"The $30,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation makes it possible for the Clackamas Service Center's community nutrition program to make a significant impact in the lives of families and our community at large,” said Andy Catts, Director of Operations of Clackamas Service Center. “It enables us to bring healthy food right to the doorstep of families in need."
St. Vincent De Paul’s Mobile Kitchen plays a critical role in getting hot meals to families in need. As of late, that has proven more challenging. Last year, the group’s one-of-a-kind converted bus broke down half-a-dozen times and was taken off the road—and away from serving families in need—for 30 days.
“Our current kitchen is a 1992 Blue Bird bus, with over 200,000 miles on it. It is becoming less reliable and more costly to repair,” said St. Vincent De Paul’s Ali Packard. “The $35,000 grant from the Walmart Foundation will go toward the purchase of a new Mobile Kitchen that will allow us to reach more communities and serve more nutritious meals to hungry Oregonians. We are so excited about this support.”
Walmart and the Walmart Foundation share in the excitement. “These are critical programs that help our neighbors live better,” said Madeleine Havener, vice president and regional general manager for Walmart. “We are proud to work with such a great network of non-profit partners to address hunger in our community. Last year alone, Walmart’s financial support and in-kind donations provided the equivalent of over 4 million meals for Oregonians—including 4.8 million pounds of food.”
These grants are part of Walmart and the Walmart Foundations “Fighting Hunger Together” initiative—a $2 billion commitment of cash and in-kind support to fight hunger across America. To date the efforts have provided the equivalent of more than 1.3 billion meals to people in need.
Key details for the check presentation:
- When: Monday, July 28, at 11:30 a.m.
- Where: Town Center Station Apartments, 8719 S.E. Monterey Ave.
- What: Walmart representatives will present checks to the Society of St. Vincent De Paul Portland Council and Clackamas Service Center
About Philanthropy at Walmart:
Walmart
and the Walmart Foundation are committed to helping people live better through
philanthropic efforts. By operating globally and giving back locally, Walmart
is uniquely positioned to address the needs of the communities it serves and
make a significant social impact within its core areas of giving: Hunger Relief
& Healthy Eating, Sustainability, Career Opportunity and Women’s Economic
Empowerment. Walmart and the Walmart Foundation are leading the fight against
hunger in the United States with a $2 billion commitment through 2015. Walmart
has donated more than 1.3 billion meals to those in need across the country. To
learn more about Walmart’s giving, visit foundation.walmart.com.
About the Society of St. Vincent De Paul
Portland Council:
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a worldwide Catholic
organization of laypersons that aims to alleviate suffering regardless of race,
ethnicity, creed, gender, orientation, handicap or religion. The St. Vincent de Paul-Portland Council
fulfills its mission by providing emergency food, rent, utility and
transportation assistance. Last year it provided 3.4 million pounds of food and
$1.5 million in rent, utility, transportation and medical assistance to residents
of Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, Clatsop, and Columbia counties. The Portland
Council is a largely volunteer run organization with over 2,200 volunteers and
13 paid staff.
About Clackamas Service Center:
The Clackamas
Service Center serves more than 13,000 individuals in Clackamas County each
year, through providing more than 4,600 food boxes, 35,000 meals and 25,000
pounds of clothing. It strives to offer healthy, nutritionally balanced food
boxes that have, on average, more than 6 pounds of fresh produce in each box we
give. Clackamas Service Center is completely donation supported.
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