A Minnesota food bank received an $18,000 donation from an anonymous donor, enabling the bank to serve 300 Thanksgiving dinners.
The contribution comes just days after Fox 21 published an article about the Churches United in Ministry’s (CHUM) difficulties in the wake of inflation. CHUM estimated that $18,000 in donations would be needed to make 300 meals possible, according to Fox 21’s September 30 article. The $18,000 donation came less than a week later, on October 4.
“They did step up and saw the need and wanted to make a difference, and provided enough funds for us to provide 300 Thanksgiving boxes to our neighbors and friends in Duluth,” Director of Distributive Services Scott Van Daele told Fox 21.
According to KBJR6, the donation will cover a variety of Thanksgiving Day essentials:
300 Turkeys
25 cases of Sweet Potatoes/Yams
300 boxes of Stuffing
25 cases of Green Beans
25 cases of Corn
25 cases of Cranberry Sauce
25 cases of Macaroni and Cheese
300 boxes of Mashed Potatoes
25 cases of Cream of Mushroom Soup
300 jars of Gravy
25 cases of Canned Pumpkin
“It feels amazing to know that we will be able to serve so many friends and neighbors this holiday, and to provide the quality ingredients to make this holiday meal so special,” Van Daele explained to KBJR6.
CHUM is a non-profit organization that “was founded in 1973 when 10 churches in Duluth’s Central Hillside neighborhood pooled their resources to meet the needs of the neighborhood’s many low-income residents more effectively,” according to the non-profit’s website.
Although CHUM received the generous donation, the organization is always in need of funding to provide food to those in need.
“We’re always in need of money for food and for boxes,” Van Daele told Fox 21. “It costs a lot to do what we do, and the benefit is that we give it all away for free. That’s the fun part. The hard part is finding the funds and the food—the fun parts giving it away to somebody that really really needs it.”