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On Thursday, November 19th, Cobb Community Foundation awarded $27,000 in grants, wrapping up the final phase of Operation Meal Plan. The initiative began in March of this year with the Cobb Chamber of Commerce and Cobb Community Foundation (“CCF”) partnering to provide food to those in need, help local restaurants keep their workers employed, and provide a vehicle for citizens to help each other.
“This project was just one great example of how Cobb’s business and non-profit communities have pulled together to get help to those who need it,” said Sharon Mason, president and CEO of the Cobb Chamber. “Our goal was to find a way to keep our restaurants afloat while providing a valuable resource to our non-profits who are serving people in need. Operation Meal Plan was a way to link these entities together.”
In its first couple of months, Operation Meal Plan received $89,000 in community contributions, funding 13,850 meals delivered by 22 different restaurants and caterers to 30 different non-profit organizations around Cobb, all of which serve meals as part of their mission.
At the end of May, Operation Meal Plan went on hiatus when Cobb’s board of commissioners allocated $1 million from its CARES Act dollars for the Cobb County Food Grant, providing an alternative source for funding of these meals for the non-profits. Remaining dollars, including a half of a $50,000 total contribution to CCF from Lockheed-Martin, would be held for distribution in the fall.
The grants, payable to six different organizations in increments of $3,000 to $6,000, will be used to purchase prepared meals from Cobb restaurants or catering businesses. “Ten months in to this pandemic, non-profit staff members and volunteers desperately need a break,” said Shari Martin, CCF’s president and CEO. “In many cases, they have been serving significantly more clients, and in all cases, they are doing so with far fewer people. Not only are these grants going to provide some financial relief, they are also going to provide some physical and emotional relief.”
- Center for Children and Young Adults (CCYA) – $6,000
- LiveSAFE Resources – $4,500
- The Table on Delk – $3,500
- Devereux Advanced Behavioral Health – $3,500
- The Zone – $6,500
- The Extension – $3,000
Interested in helping others navigate the challenges of the pandemic? Let us help you! Call us at 770-859-2366 or email CCFTeam@cobbfoundation.org.
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