Monday, February 8, 2016

Five Straight Years of Grant Support Has Secured Food Needs for Thousands of Underfunded UVA Hospital Guests and Out-Patients

As we entered 2016, the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation (CACF) provided a Grant of $4,000.00. This grant is dedicated to our Food Program. With this grant the Fund has contributed a total of $38,000.00 in the last five years.   

This Grant is impacting on two distinctive IHS food programs

The UVA Hospitality House (HH).  The thirty(30) room facility which can lodge about sixty(60) people is the only affordable opportunity for lodging for indigent and unfunded long distance out-patients and caregivers who must come for treatment at the UVA Medical Center in Charlottesville. UVA Hospitality House does not have a budget for food and kitchen related items, and is supported through donations. Although HH receives a small grant from the Emergency Food Bank, the most consistent supplier is IHS. And this specific grant has been the main reason for this charity's ability to secure a monthly fulfillment of needs for HH guests.

The Full-day Meal Packet Program.  IHS stocks a large cabinet in the Office of Social Work in the main hospital, which allows UVA Social Workers 24/7 access to provide underfunded guests with proper nourishment. Presently, from 250-300 full-day meal packets are delivered monthly. This translates in an active use year to 3,000 packets, or approximately $19,500.00. The program is mostly a community effort, whereby churches, schools, clubs, scouts, day-care centers, businesses, hospital clinics and families buy and assemble packets and deliver to IHS volunteers to keep the cabinet full year-round.  When participation is reduced in summer and holidays, the Bama Works Fund is accessed to purchase supplies for maintaining consistent delivery to the Office of Social Work.

A Special Letter from Mary Jackson, Supervisor, UVA Hospitality House
"The continuation of support by the Bama Works Grant to Interfaith Humanitarian Sanctum (IHS) is still irreplaceable and crucial to the well-being of our guests (the majority of whom are low-income earners and many are indigent).

The UVA Hospitality House's ability to provide free food diminished in May of 2015. The Emergency Food Bank (EFB) of Charlottesville lowered its monthly contribution from $400 to $200.  The EFB cited reduced contributions and increased requests for assistance, which resulted in across the board cuts.  IHS has dedicated its support not only to our twice monthly requests for kitchen related supplies, but also lodging support for the least able, especially with the opening of the Battle Building and a higher number of long term guests here. I can not envision a smaller demand for food assistance ever occurring.

Without any funds allowed in our budget for food, we are completely reliant on contributions in order to provide for our guests.  IHS has remained that dependable asset and Bama Works Fund Grant has remained a most dependable friend in order to secure IHS's reliability."

To the Bama Works Fund of Dave Matthews Band in CACF Committee ... Thank you for allowing this group of volunteers the needed funds to assist in the feeding of the least able visitors to our community.

Sincerely ... ALL of IHS, the UVA Social Staff and UVA Hospitality House Staff