Very good Shepherd Foods Bank responds to billionaire’s donation

A worker packs meals packing containers at Fantastic Shepherd Food items Lender. Very good Shepherd Food items Lender photograph

AUBURN — The folks of Great Shepherd Food Financial institution are thrilled to say the minimum. 

Slated to receive a chunk of a $4 billion donation from writer and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, Good Shepherd organizers say the resources will help them get extra food items to more persons who desperately need to have it. 

How will they use the money? 

“We are rapidly convening our board of directors, management staff, and other stakeholders,” President Kristen Miale mentioned, “and operating hard to ensure that the philanthropy entrusted to us will aid a lot more Mainers entry far more wholesome food stuff equitably and competently — now for the duration of the crisis of COVID-19, and for the very long term.”  

It’s not distinct particularly how substantially Great Shepherd will receive. The Foodstuff Financial institution expects to get its gift early in 2021 and ideas to share aspects at that time and how it will be invested throughout Maine’s charitable foodstuff community. 

“MacKenzie Scott’s investment in Maine is a vote of self confidence in the perform we are all performing collectively to conclusion hunger in our wonderful point out,” Miale mentioned. “From our a lot more than 500 neighborhood companions and our food items donors, to all the people today, businesses and foundations that assist us with money contributions at each and every degree — we ought to all really feel happy to obtain this national and international recognition.” 

Scott announced the donations Tuesday by way of a web site article on Medium, with quite a few of the recipients serving vulnerable populations that have been strike further challenging by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

According to Good Shepherd, the announcement arrives as Maine is in the midst of an unprecedented starvation disaster. Just before the COVID-19 pandemic, Maine had the 12th maximum food items insecurity price in the country with 180,000 Mainers relying on Excellent Shepherd Foods Lender and its statewide community of partners. Now, that number methods 215,000 individuals, at least 60,000 of whom are kids, with homes of colour enduring disproportionately greater fees of hunger. 

Based mostly on info from Feeding America, the greatest hunger-aid firm in the U.S., Good Shepherd Food items Financial institution estimates there are around 13 million foods missing from the plates of Mainers this 12 months, on leading of the 27.2 million meals the Foods Lender and its associates are delivering. The group aims to shut this meal gap by 2025. 

Very good Shepherd Food stuff Lender not long ago published knowledge demonstrating the effect of its network’s get the job done in the previous 12 months. Despite major food sourcing difficulties through the top of the pandemic, the Food items Bank dispersed two million a lot more meals yr-more than-year though increasing the volume of domestically grown and created foods by 25%. To aid bolster the statewide work, the Foods Lender granted a lot more than $1 million to food stuff pantries, food web sites, universities, and other companions throughout the point out, which includes grants to companies led by and serving communities of shade for sourcing culturally related foods. 

“The philanthropic expenditure from MacKenzie Scott will be an accelerator and amplifier as we operate towards the goal of ending starvation in Maine, but the issue is larger than what any one particular philanthropist can address,” Miale explained. “Ending hunger and its devastating effects in our great point out is in just our arrive at when we all come with each other and contribute to the resolution. With this expense and the ongoing generosity of all Mainers, jointly we can end starvation.” 

For additional details, pay a visit to feedingmaine.org. 

« Prior

Associated Tales