COMSTOCK PARK, Mich., Feb. 24, 2021 — The Osceola County Community Foundation recently granted Feeding America West Michigan funds to bolster their hunger-relief efforts in the county. The grant will sponsor 12 Mobile Food Pantries and support the food bank’s agency partners in Osceola County.
In December, estimates showed that 1 in 5 people in the county may be facing hunger — up from 1 in 7 before the pandemic. But now, the need could be even higher. Mobile Pantries recently hosted in Evart, a small town in the county, have served nearly 100 more families than ones hosted a few months ago. Pandemic-related closures, like at a glass factory that employed over 100 people, have intensified the need for food in this rural county that already has few employers.
One food pantry in the county — supported by the food bank with help from Osceola County Community Foundation last year — recently received a call from a woman who said she and her husband couldn’t afford food because they had to purchase new glasses. She’s among many who have never before faced hunger but are now seeking food assistance.
“We always need localized support to do our work, but after such a trying year, and with the need still heightened, support from organizations like the Osceola County Community Foundation is even more crucial,” said the food bank’s president and CEO Ken Estelle.
About Feeding America West Michigan
Serving local families in need since 1981, Feeding America West Michigan reclaims millions of meals’ worth of safe, surplus food from various sources. With the help of countless volunteers, the food bank sorts, stores and distributes this food through a network of more than 800 partners to fill hundreds of thousands of neighbors’ plates instead of landfills. The food bank’s service area consists of 40 of Michigan’s 83 counties from the Indiana border north through the Upper Peninsula. For more information, visit FeedWM.org or call 616-784-3250.
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