Idaho Food Bank Fund 2015 grant recipients announced
This year, the Idaho Food Bank awarded 35 non-profit organizations with grants to help fund projects working to solve hunger in Idaho.The projects range from expanding existing food storage or distribution capacities to providing nutrition education.
There are 13 winning non-profits in eastern Idaho, with three in Pocatello.
One of the winning non-profits is St. Vincent de Paul. When you go in its food pantry, it looks like they have enough fridge and freezer space. It certainly was enough, until more people started showing up asking for food.
“We used to serve maybe just 800 to 900 individuals,” said sister Maria David, director of social services at St. Vincent de Paul. “Now we’re up to 1,800 to almost 2,000 a week.”
The Idaho Food Bank is giving them $2,500 to get a new fridge and freezer, to maintain and store more food.
It’s a similar situation at the shelter Aid for Friends. While the two fridges in the kitchen work just fine, one in the pantry doesn’t even work. To replace it, the Idaho Food Bank is giving the shelter $2,139.
BJ Stensland, Aid for Friend’s executive director, said the need is big because the shelter’s at full capacity.
“It’s very important that we are able to have nutritious produce, dairy and meat so we can do leftovers,” she said. “We need that refrigerator to have that available to them.”
The Family Services Alliance of SE Idaho will be getting $500 to build space for better food storage. The organization works with many domestic violence cases, and in those situations economic abuse is very common.
Sarah O’Banion, the organization’s executive director, said a box of food can be a life changer.
She said, “For someone who has fled a domestic violence situation and is coming into an emergency shelter or just has the clothes on her back– to come in and be able to receive food is very valuable to them.”
All of the grants this year total up to $90,000. Here’s the complete list of organizations that received grants:
Region 1
Post Falls Food Bank / Post Falls, ID / Project: Weekend Nutrition Backpack Program
Region 2
Camas Prarie Food Bank, Inc. / Grangeville, ID / Project: Transportation for Food
Nezperce Food Pantry / Nezperce, ID / Project: Expansion and Fresh Foods Program
Salmon River Senior Citizens, Inc. / Riggins, ID / Project: Food Bank Building Project
Trinity Moscow Food Pantry / Moscow, ID / Project: Refrigerator Upgrade
Region 3
Cambridge-Midvale Senior Center / Cambridge, ID / Project: Pantry Freezer
Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry / Council, ID / Project: Insulation and Heat
Middleton Foodbank / Middleton, ID / Project: Facility Improvements
New Meadows Food Bank / New Meadows, ID / Project: Refrigeration Upgrade
Parma Senior Center / Parma, ID / Project: Lifting Senior Nutrition
Society of St. Vincent de Paul Nampa / Nampa, ID / Project: Freezer Replacements
The Salvation Army / Caldwell, ID / Project: Food Pantry
Region 4
Cascade Food Pantry / Cascade, ID / Project: Deeper and Wider
Life’s Kitchen, Inc. / Boise, ID / Project: Hunger Relief Equipment Upgrade
Star Outreach / Star, ID / Project: Fixed Asset – Computer, Printer & Back-Up Disk Drive
Region 5
Crisis Center of Magic Valley / Twin Falls, ID / Project: Survivors Kitchen
Helping Hearts & Hands, Inc. / Gooding, ID / Project: Funds for Food
Jerome Senior Center / Jerome, ID / Project: Senior Congregate and Home Delivered Nutrition
Jubilee House, Inc. / Twin Falls, ID / Project: Basic Needs
Safe Harbor / Twin Falls, ID / Project: Safe Harbor Saturday Soup Kitchen
Twin Falls Senior Center / Twin Falls, ID / Project: Kitchen Equipment for Meal Program
Wendell Food Bank / Wendell, ID / Project: Refrigeration/Freezer
Region 6
Aberdeen Senior Citizen Center of Bingham Co. / Aberdeen, ID / Project: Painting Roof of Van and Home Delivered Meals
Aid for Friends / Pocatello, ID / Project: Food Storage at Emergency Shelter
Bingham County Senior Citizen’s Center / Blackfoot, ID / Project: Meals on Wheels, Food Pantry
Bingham Crisis Center / Blackfoot, ID / Project: BCC Food Bank
Blackfoot Community Center / Blackfoot, ID / Project: Helping Kids Grow
Family Services Alliance of SE Idaho / Pocatello, ID / Project: Improving the Lives of Families Affected by Violence
St. Vincent de Paul / Pocatello, ID / Project: St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry
Region 7
Idaho Falls Senior Center / Idaho Falls, ID / Project: New Refrigerator & Ice Chests
Rigby Senior Center / Rigby, ID / Project: Meals on Wheels
Salmon Assembly of God / Salmon, ID / Project: Refrigeration, Wiring & Fridge Room Ventilation
St. Vincent de Paul / Idaho Falls, ID / Project: Food Pantry
Teton Valley Food Pantry / Driggs, ID / Project: Upright Freezers Replacement
Upper Valley Bible Church Food Pantry / St. Anthony, ID / Project: Refrigerator
