People In Need, Inc. will once again partner with Meijer to provide much-needed relief to local families facing food insecurity through the retailer’s customer-driven hunger relief program, Simply Give.
“Support from our partners at Meijer has been critical to PIN’s impact in Delaware County. Last year, we distributed 451,484 meals through our food pantry. The need for our services has not slowed down, and we are excited and grateful to have Meijer partner with us again,” said Kathy Hoff, PIN’s executive director.
PIN notes that as the local community continues to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and uncertainty around guidelines and wage disruptions continue to place extreme pressure on low-income families, food pantries are seeing increased demand in their communities.
Each Meijer Simply Give campaign replenishes the shelves of more than 250 food pantries in Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky and Wisconsin. The program encourages customers to purchase $10 Simply Give donation cards, which are then converted into Meijer food-only gift cards and given to a local food pantry in the store’s community.
PIN will benefit from donation cards purchased at the Delaware County Meijer stores located at 1380 Sunbury Road in Delaware and 8870 Columbus Pike in Lewis Center now through Jan. 1. In addition, Meijer will double match any cards purchased on Saturday, Dec. 11, effectively tripling contributions made on that day. Meijer customers shopping online using Meijer pickup or home delivery can also purchase Simply Give donation cards as an add-on to their orders.
“The events of the last year-and-a-half have taught us all the importance of community members supporting each other,” Hoff said. “We encourage community members to help us feed their neighbors facing food insecurity in Delaware County this holiday season by purchasing a Meijer Simply Give food donation card during their next shopping trip.”
In light of increased need resulting from COVID-19, Meijer donated more than $7.6 million to Simply Give food pantry partners in 2020 and made an additional $1 million gift in March. Since the program began in November 2008, more than $67 million has been generated for food pantries in the Midwest to distribute to our neighbors in need.
“The holidays are a difficult time for people facing food insecurity and food pantries continue to struggle to keep up with the flood of requests they receive daily, especially given the difficult circumstances many families now face amidst the global pandemic,” said Cathy Cooper, senior director of Community Partnerships and Giving for Meijer. “The Simply Give program is a way for Meijer customers to partner with us and support the food banks and pantries that feed families in need in their own communities. We certainly couldn’t do it without the support and commitment of our generous customers and team members, who stand beside us in this effort.”
People In Need, Inc. of Delaware County Ohio (PIN) is a private, not-for-profit 501 (C)(3) social services agency dedicated to providing emergency assistance to Delaware County residents. For more information on the services provided by PIN, visit DelawarePeopleInNeed.org.
