Washington County, OH – Food insecurity continues to be a dilemma many across the nation are facing during the COVID-19 pandemic, but several local organizations in Washington County have banded together to minimize the negative effects of this crisis.
Together, Marietta Community Foundation, The Bernard McDonough Foundation, Dale & Courtney Knight, and Marietta College donated approximately $40,000 to local food pantries throughout Washington County.
“Our foundation provides an enormous benefit to non-profits in the Mid-Ohio Valley and we are honored to match the donation provided by Dale and Courtney Knight,” Bob Boone, President at the Bernard McDonough Foundation. “We also appreciate the board at Marietta Community Foundation for providing a matching grant that together will make a huge impact on food insecurity to the residents in Washington County.”
The $40,000 grant will be disbursed to each qualifying pantry based on the population size they serve.
The grant was initiated by the Knight family, board members at the McDonough Foundation, due to rising concerns of food insecurity. The Knights wanted to donate $10,000 to these efforts, which The Bernard McDonough Foundation matched.
“We have been blessed to grow up and raise our family in Marietta,” said Dale Knight. “During this very challenging time of COVID-19, there are many households in our community who do not have sufficient access to food. We are hopeful that our donation, along with the matching donations from The Bernard McDonough Foundation and Marietta Community Foundation will help local food pantries obtain additional food for those in need.”
The Bernard McDonough Foundation and the Knight Family saw Marietta Community Foundation as an ideal partner since they have already taken extensive efforts to support the local food pantries. Marietta Community Foundation gave an additional $10,000 from its COVID-19 Community Response Fund and will help disperse the appropriate amount of funds to each pantry.
“This is another example of how working together can benefit the masses,” said Heather Allender, President & CEO of Marietta Community Foundation. “Creating our own silos will never benefit the people we are supposed to serve… collaboration is the key to a successful community.”
The final component of this grant came from the generosity of Marietta College’s Office of Civic Engagement in the form of a virtual food-drive. Through this initiative, members of the college’s faculty, staff, student body, members of the Board of Trustees, and many more individuals raised over $9,300 to assist with these efforts.
“For all of us, the local community is our home, the organizations on the front lines of response are our partners, and the people of Washington County are our neighbors,” said Maribeth Saleem-Tanner, Director of Civic Engagement at Marietta College. “Everyone I talked to about this project was so grateful to have an opportunity to contribute and help. I’m proud to be part of an organization that, in the midst of so many changes and moving parts and challenges and problem-solving, asks as one of the very first questions, ‘What do people need and how can we help?’”
This is not the first inter-foundation partnership Marietta Community Foundation has taken part in. Earlier this month it was announced that Sisters Health Foundation gave a $25,000 matching-grant to be used to combat negative consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As trusted community leaders we keep an open line of communication with our local nonprofits to see what challenges they are facing,” said Allender. “That is why we are a vital resource to our nonprofits, donors, and other funders in the area. We make giving back easy!”
Marietta Community Foundation works to improve Washington County through grants and initiatives, if you want to donate to the COVID-19 Community Response Fund or volunteer with a local nonprofit in need, please contact Heather Allender at 740-373-3286 or heather@mcfohio.org.