Post from Community: Rotary Club donates $20,000 to fight COVID-related food insecurity in Johnsons Park neighborhood | Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service
Rotary Club of Milwaukee
June 11, 2020
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The Rotary Club of Milwaukee (the Club) today announced plans to distribute $20,000 across five local organizations combating food insecurity in the Johnsons Park neighborhood – a neighborhood of focus for the Club.
In the wake of COVID-19 and with in-person Rotarian meetings on hold, the Club made the decision early on to repurpose funds typically used to provide meals at meetings to help local organizations provide food and support to the community in this challenging time.
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“In the face of global struggle, we want to use the resources we have to help serve those struggling in our community,” said Rotary Club of Milwaukee President Steve Chevalier. “The selected organizations have all stepped up to provide food and relief in this challenging time, and we’re honored to play a part in furthering their efforts.”
The Club selected the following five organizations to receive financial support, addressing a range of projects and needs:
Alice’s Gardens will receive $5,000 to help meet the increased demand for garden plots and local fresh food;
Fondy Food will receive $5,000, which will provide dollar-for-dollar matching funds to people participating in food share programs with fresh produce, doubling a family’s access to fresh, nutritious food;
Tandem will receive $5,000 to continue partnerships with local restaurants to provide free food to anyone in need;
St. Ann Center will receive $2,500 to provide food for participants in the intergenerational and adult day care programming; and
House of Peace will receive $2,500 for its emergency food pantry services in the Johnsons Park area.
These organizations were selected based on criteria set forth by the Club to maximize impact in the community. The criteria includes the following:
Recipient organization’s mission addresses food insecurity in the local community, in the effort to achieve “food symmetry” from the Club table to the community’s table;
Activities and projects directly benefit people living in the Johnsons Park Neighborhood;
Organization is adaptable and responsive to the changing needs of the community as we move through different stages of the pandemic;
Organization has a clear impact that lifts up dignity of those involved;
Organization has demonstrated need, where a gift of this size makes a noticeable difference; and
Gift will cause a ripple effect and make an impact beyond one organization.
Since March, the Rotary Club of Milwaukee has also made donations totaling $13,500 to Feeding America of Eastern Wisconsin and Progressive Community Health Centers to help bring COVID-19 testing to the community.
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About the Rotary Club of Milwaukee
The Rotary Club of Milwaukee brings together and informs leaders who, together, take action to create lasting change – in the Milwaukee community, across the globe and in ourselves.
RCM is part of the effort to transform the neglected Johnsons Park area into an urban green space that meets the needs of neighbors and community groups in the historic Lindsay Heights neighborhood. RCM contributed $200,000 and led the fundraising effort for the Greater Johnsons Park Initiative, valued at more than $3 million. The Johnsons Park area is a greener, safer place for healthy recreation, arts and community gatherings that will contribute to a higher quality of life for its neighbors.
For more information, visit www.milwaukeerotary.com.