In 40 years, the meals financial institution positioned in Elizabethtown has grown to service 42 counties and greater than 200,000 individuals every year.
Feeding America, Kentucky’s Heartland celebrated its fortieth anniversary with a dinner program Thursday on the Hardin County Cooperative Extension Service workplace.
Volunteers, donors, accomplice organizations and companies, present and former workers and board members, have been invited to the anniversary celebration sponsored by the Kroger Zero Starvation Zero Waste Basis.
Govt Director Jamie Sizemore mentioned she didn’t wish to do one other fundraiser for the group on the anniversary and as a substitute determined to do a collection of celebratory occasions all through its service space.
“Tonight was extra about simply all the nice work that’s been accomplished,” she mentioned.
Earlier than the occasion in Elizabethtown, there was the same occasion in Hopkinsville and one other is arising in Bowling Inexperienced.
Throughout her remarks, Sizemore mentioned the group reached a milestone in 2021 by distributing greater than 300 million kilos of meals over the past 40 years.
On the occasion, Rita Jenkins was current, who, together with Dottie Hansen, helped set up the Kentucky Meals Financial institution in 1982.
“Who might have imagined 40 years in the past that Feeding America, Kentucky’s Heartland would develop from distributing 80,000 kilos of donated meals by means of simply 5 accomplice businesses in our first full yr of operation to distributing over 21 million kilos yearly by means of our greater than 240 accomplice businesses?” Sizemore mentioned throughout her speech.
Sizemore announcedthat two new applications can be carried out within the fall in alliance with college districts and medical suppliers.
She mentioned the main points nonetheless are being labored, however this system pertaining to colleges will contain getting meals to those that want it to the place these individuals are. With the medical suppliers, she mentioned Feeding America needs to discover a method that sufferers could be screened for meals insecurity with a view to obtain assist.
Kathy Dile, director of finance administration, has been working at FAKH for 23 years, and is the longest tenured worker on the group. She mentioned she’s blissful ,concerning the anniversary and serving to these in want though she needs that starvation have been eradicated in order that the work they do wouldn’t be essential.
“We’re glad we’re right here,” she mentioned. “We’re glad we’re serving to.”