Central Pennsylvania Food Bank Receives $400,000 from AllOne Foundation to Support COVID-19 Recovery

The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank announced it has received nearly $400,000 over the past two years from the AllOne Foundation.

The grant supports the Food Bank’s crisis recovery work in Bradford, Clinton, Lycoming, Sullivan and Tioga counties.  When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020, food pantries in those counties saw demand for food increase as high as 145% over the previous year.  Overall, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank saw demand increase more than 40%. Thousands of families in central Pennsylvania experienced food insecurity for the first time, and of those individuals, one-third were children.  While demand is down from its 2020 peak, the need for food assistance remains far above the level of need prior to the pandemic.

“The AllOne Foundation’s generous gifts have helped us provide more than 2.4 million meals in counties where they are needed the most, as we know that recovery is taking longer in our most rural communities,” said Joe Arthur, Executive Director of Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. “Residents of these communities are working hard to get back on their feet in the wake of the pandemic, but still need extra help with food.  We expect our crisis recovery to take up to two years and generous gifts such as the one from the AllOne Foundation will go a long way toward helping us meeting the need and live our mission of fighting hunger, improving lives and strengthening communities.”  

The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank provided an average of over 6 million meals each month, nutritious food, through their network of local partners during the crisis response. To learn more about the work of the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and how you can join in the fight to end hunger, please visit www.centralpafoodbank.org.

About Central Pennsylvania Food Bank

The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to reduce hunger in 27 counties across Pennsylvania. By working with more than 1,000 local agencies and partner programs, the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank serves nearly 200,000 people in need every month. For more information on the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank and its mission to reduce hunger in Pennsylvania, visit centralpafoodbank.org or call 717-564-1700.