Greater Charitable Foundation funding has enabled food rescue service, OzHarvest, to meet an immediate and growing need for food relief as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.
In 2018, Greater Charitable Foundation provided $150,000 in funding to support a three-year rollout of the Nutrition Education and Skills Training (NEST) program but COVID-19 restrictions forced OzHarvest to put this program on hold.
The pandemic has created an even greater demand for OzHarvest’s services across Newcastle and the Gold Coast as those relying on food relief increases every day. As a result, they decided to redeploy the funding, as well as their own resources, to produce 2000 Food Essential Boxes to support vulnerable families and households across Newcastle and the Gold Coast.
The OzHarvest Food Essential Boxes are developed using the NEST principles to enable vulnerable people to cook healthy food on a budget. Each box contains easy to follow recipe cards and ingredients to feed a family of four for a week, including a variety of fresh fruit and vegetables, and non-perishable pantry items.
Greater Charitable Foundation Chief Executive Officer, Anne Long, said the unprecedented nature of COVID-19 forced many of their partners, including OzHarvest, to either innovate the way in which current services are delivered or pivot their service to meet changing needs.
“The immediate impact of COVID-19 on OzHarvest was significant, but they quickly pivoted their service model to address this immediate need within the Newcastle and Gold Coast communities."
“It became more important than ever for us to reaffirm our support and commitment to OzHarvest and work closely with them to deliver this critically important service.
“We are incredibly proud of the work OzHarvest has undertaken in a short amount of time to evolve their business and maintain their focus on providing the Newcastle and Gold Coast communities with much needed support,” Ms Long said.
Since its establishment in 2011, the Greater Charitable Foundation has operated to improve the life outcomes of families and communities throughout NSW and South-East Queensland.
Over the past nine years, the Foundation has committed more than $9.5 million in funding to support 31 charitable organisations. This has provided a direct benefit to more than 32,000 people.
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