The Independence from Hunger campaign promoted during the whole month of July 2023, coordinated by the Cave Junction Grocery Outlet, donated $4,192 to the nonprofit Illinois Valley Living Solutions to help feed Valley residents with food insecurities.
On Jan. 22, Grocery Outlet owners Ethan and Ineke Lane, along with the Illinois Valley Living Solutions staff, got together to celebrate the generous donation with a photo of a big check in the produce aisle of the grocery store.
Grocery Outlet owners said, “We have been doing this every year since we opened starting in July 2019. This campaign has been company-wide for a few years before that.”
The first local organization to receive money from the Independence from Hunger campaign was Cave Junction Homeless Alliance followed by Illinois Valley Community Development, and I.V. Wellness Resources.
“We like to partner with who we feel is going to make the most positive impact on our community. I.V Living Solutions does so much for our area that we are proud to partner with Laura Mancuso and her team. Partnering with this team allows this money to reach other organizations that help the need in our community. They are a wonderful bunch of people acting on what most people just talk about,” wrote Ethan Lane in an email.
According to IVLS Outreach Coordinator Joe Ninnemann, “The money we received from Grocery Outlet will primarily be used to help purchase food for the hot meal served at the Pop Up Public Health event every Wednesday at Jubilee Park.” He also explained that a portion of the money will be used to provide Grocery Outlet gift cards for other community-based organizations such as the I.V. Family Coalition and I.V. Wellness Resources. The gift cards will be given out to their low-income clients in need of groceries or nonperishable supplies.
Ineke Lane emphasized that all of the staff at Grocery Outlet work very hard to make the campaign a success and that she is grateful for their dedication.
“Independence from Hunger is very special to me because it’s all of our local money staying local. Unlike many other companies that collect donations and send them to their corporate office, the money collected here at our store stays in the Illinois Valley. Every single penny goes to the organization that we partner with. We don’t even take an administration fee or anything; it’s dollar for dollar,” said Ethan Lane.
The staff at IVLS wanted to express their sincere gratitude for the donation from Grocery Outlet, so that they can continue to help disadvantaged people in need of food in the Valley.