A food pantry program that has been assisting more families in the Wallaceburg and Walpole Island area has received a boost from the Chatham Kent Community Foundation.
Society of St. Vincent de Paul is using the $15,000 grant to operate the Wallaceburg Food Pantry program. The grant was funded in part by the South Kent Wind Community Fund.
“South Kent Wind is always proud to support great organizations, projects and charities in Chatham-Kent,” Kevin Aikenhead, facility manager with South Kent Wind, said in a news release.
“The grant given to the St. Vincent de Paul Society food panty is another fantastic program we are thrilled to support.”
Families who need assistance are able to come to the pantry every 30 days for a box of non-perishable food and President’s Choice gift cards for perishable items.
The pantry assisted 654 families in 2022, up from 472 in 2021, according to the release.
The society received the grant in the fall.
“Society of Saint Vincent de Paul received this generous grant at a time we were making some difficult decisions about our Food Pantry Program,” Kim VanDamme, treasurer with the society, said in the release.
“With the increase in the number of families requiring assistance and the ever-rising cost of food we are very concerned about having enough funds to sustain our program. This grant enabled us to keep our doors open in order to serve the many families in our community.”
The Chatham Kent Community Foundation awarded $574,000 in grants to 45 Chatham-Kent charities in 2022.
The deadline to apply for 2023 spring grants is March 31. Applications can be submitted to www.chathamkentcommunityfoundation.ca.