Lowcountry Food Bank receives $75,000 from Morgan Stanley Foundation
July 27, 2021
Donation Will Help Children and Families Facing Hunger in the Lowcountry
Lowcountry Food Bank announced today it received a $75,000 grant from the Morgan Stanley Foundation. The funds will provide a unique opportunity for Lowcountry Food Bank to reintroduce elements of choice to food distributions, while still maintaining safety protocols due to the coronavirus pandemic. The choice model provides more healthy options and ensures families have access to foods aligned with their preferences and dietary requirements.
As a result of COVID-19, one in four children may face hunger in the 10 coastal counties served by the Lowcountry Food Bank in 2021. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, nationally, Black, non-Hispanic individuals were 2.4 times as likely to live in food-insecure households as non-Hispanic whites (19.2% compared to 8.1%). In other words, 1 in 5 (19.2%) Black, non-Hispanic individuals were at risk of hunger. Lowcountry Food Bank, a member of the Feeding America® network, is one of 28 member food banks to receive this funding from the Morgan Stanley Foundation.
It is projected that this grant will enable Lowcountry families to select from fresh, nutritious food including produce, protein and dairy, and shelf-stable foods, including culturally appropriate items and prepared items from the Lowcountry Food Bank’s Zucker Family Production Kitchen. The School Markets will eliminate potential barriers such as transportation and cost that can hinder a child’s ability to acquire the food needed for them to live healthy, active lives.
“This grant helps us provide equitable food access to the rural families in our service area who may otherwise have a hard time getting to a food pantry,” said Nick Osborne, Lowcountry Food Bank President & CEO. “We are grateful to the Morgan Stanley Foundation for their generosity.”
“For 60 years, the Morgan Stanley Foundation has been dedicated to ensuring children received the healthy start to life they deserve – and ensuring they have access to healthy and nutritious food is a crucial part of that commitment,” said Joan Steinberg, Global Head of Philanthropy at Morgan Stanley. “Given the challenges that we’ve seen exacerbated by the pandemic over the past year, we are pleased to build upon our decade long partnership with Feeding America to help fight hunger through this impactful choice model in the communities where we live and work.”
Morgan Stanley has a long-standing commitment to helping communities facing hunger and has donated more than $38 million to the Feeding America network in the last decade.
To learn more about how you can join the fight to end hunger, visit lowcountryfoodbank.org.
About the Lowcountry Food Bank: Feed. Advocate. Empower.
The Lowcountry Food Bank serves the 10 coastal counties of South Carolina and distributed more than 39 million pounds of food in 2020. The Lowcountry Food Bank helps fight hunger by distributing food to nearly 300 partner agencies including on-site meal programs, homeless shelters and emergency food pantries. The Lowcountry Food Bank advocates on behalf of those who experience hunger and helps empower people to make healthy and nutritious food choices. For more information, go to the Lowcountry Food Bank website at lowcountryfoodbank.org
