Food Pantry Awarded Grant from The Community Foundation of Collier County

Our Daily Bread Food Pantry (ODBFP) is pleased to announce that a grant of $10,000 has been received from the Community Foundation of Collier County (CFCC). These funds will support the work of ODBFP that provides food six days a week from the home base on Marco Island for those who live or work on the island and at nine other mobile locations in East and South Naples.

“ODBFP has been on the frontlines during the pandemic addressing increasing food insecurity in Marco Island. We are proud to help them in their mission to wipe out hunger with this grant,” says Eileen Connolly-Keesler, Community Foundation of Collier County President and CEO. 

“The Marco Island Community Fund allows us to provide funding to meet critical needs such as hunger and improve the quality of life for Marco residents.”

In 2020 ODBFP served over 115,000 people, a 365-percent increase from 2019 due to Covid-19. ODBFP’s mission is “Working to Wipe Out Hunger” in the areas served in Southwest Florida, making food accessible and available to anyone in need. An all-volunteer workforce brings in food and donations from local community organizations, clubs, neighborhoods, individuals, businesses, grant makers and ministry organizations.

The 2021 Marco Island Fund Grant goals include:

• Preventing homelessness. Helping with food assistance allowing those in need to stay current with rent, utilities, and other expenses helps them to remain in their homes. People who lose their homes must fund four times more to reinstall in a new home due to security deposits, first and last month’s rents and other new renter costs.
• Providing stability for families, thus reducing stress, knowing they have access to food when needed.
• Improving the health of guests by providing well-balanced food options. In Florida, only 27-percent of the population eat the recommended daily number of fruits and vegetables, and 31-percent are obese. To best address the nutritional value of the food offered, the pantry buys fresh produce, eggs, milk, dry and canned goods, and meats (protein), which are often lacking in the diets of food-insecure school children. 
• Providing a sense of caring and community in stressful times.

“We live in an area where one in eight adults may not know where their next meal is coming from; for children, that number rises to one in five. While vaccines have helped stop many of the debilitating effects of Covid-19, food insecurity is still widespread in our area, and the tremendous need for our food distribution continues,” says Liz Pecora, ODBFP Vice President Development and Communications. 

“The generosity of donors through the Marco Island Community Fund enables us to meet these critical, tangible needs right here in our community.”

The Community Foundation of Collier County awards annual grants through a competitive application and review process. Selected organizations receive grant dollars from the Changing Needs Fund. This Fund consists of donors who believe in the Community Foundation’s ability to identify and grant to the most community’s most current needs.