Food Gatherers Secures USDA Grant for Rural Food Programs
Ann Arbor — Food Gatherers, the food bank and food rescue serving Washtenaw County, has secured an $85,000 grant on behalf of two of its partner agencies.
Aid in Milan and Manchester Community Resource Center will both receive a portion of the TEFAP Reach and Resiliency Grant. The goal of the grant is to address potential gaps in The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) coverage by making critical investments in food distribution infrastructure in underserved areas.
Aid in Milan and Manchester Community Resource Center both serve rural communities in the county, where residents do not have access to public transportation. Through the grant, Food Gatherers aims to help its partners extend homebound delivery and pop-up distributions into rural communities to increase food access for community members.
“As the local food bank, we are thrilled to be able to access these federal dollars from the USDA,” says Eileen Spring, President and CEO of Food Gatherers. “These funds will bolster the efforts of two of our long-standing partners who provide such critical safety net services in their communities.”
Aid in Milan will receive the majority of the grant funding to purchase a delivery van to expand services in the Milan and Manchester area. The food for the program comes from TEFAP, a USDA program that is a source of donated food for food banks and emergency food pantries. Food Gatherers will also provide a variety of other foods to our partners for their new and expanding rural services.
“The Reach and Resiliency grant is a game-changer,” says Michele McGovern, Interim Executive Director at Aid in Milan. “We believe that access to fresh and healthy food is for everyone, whether they can drive to us or not and the grant will allow us to expand our food pantry programs further into the community.
“We specialize in finding solutions to problems, but none of it would be possible without Food Gatherers swooping in with supplies and resources again and again. They are vital to our day-to-day work and ultimately to our community. We couldn’t be more thankful for this partnership.”
About Food Gatherers
Food Gatherers’ mission is to alleviate hunger and eliminate its root causes in Washtenaw County. Last year, our food bank and food rescue program distributed 7.3 million pounds of food to more than 170 non-profit programs serving adults, seniors and children. For a list of our
partner programs or to learn how you can become involved in the fight against hunger locally, please visit www.foodgatherers.org or call 734-761-2796.
