The Scioto County Commissioners have announced that Rarden Daily Bread, a soup kitchen in northwestern part of the county, has been awarded $250,000 in grant funding.
The grant is part of an agreement with the Ohio Department of Development and the commissioners. It also requires a local match of $242,000.
The money will be used to upgrade the soup kitchen’s addition to the current building housing Rarden Daily Bread. Upgrades will include a walk-in cooler/freezer, a 12-foot by 9-foot pantry space, new HVAC, and flooring. These additions are important because the volunteers currently cook in the own homes and bring the food to a central location to feed hungry locals.
“I love it. They worked really hard to build out their infrastructure out there to help people,” said Commission Chair Bryan Davis.
The pantry provides nearly 150 hot meals every day, said Commissioner Scottie Powell.
“It’s roughly 140-150 meals a day. Yeah, hot meals,” Powell said. “They’ve been cooking these meals in their homes and bringing them to the community center and then distributing out to folks in need. Fantastic organization. They really operate off the radar for the most part. It’s always good to be able to help out.”
Everything Rarden Daily Bread does is donation- and volunteer-based. Powell urged other organizations and student programs to consider getting involved.
“If you have students that need volunteer hours …” Powell said.
Davis said the group also deliver to those in need who are homebound and have recently also received a Healthy Aging grant. The Healthy Aging grant allows the soup kitchen to increase its stockpile of non-perishables.
“They’re very impressive and very much needed,” Davis said. “They don’t turn anybody away.”
Reach Lori McNelly at [email protected] or at (740) 353-3101 ext. 1928. © 2024 Portsmouth Daily Times, all rights reserved
