The Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida has received a $50,000 grant from the Morgan Stanley Foundation to fund its children’s food programs, which provide readily accessible sources of healthy and nutritious food for children and their families in convenient and familiar locations, such as a school. The food bank is one of 35 food banks that received funding from Morgan Stanley as part of a $1.25 Million gift to Feeding America® member food banks to help develop, launch, expand and sustain critical child nutrition programs.
“We are thrilled to receive this vital grant from Morgan Stanley in support of our efforts to help provide more nutritious meals to children and families,” said Richard LeBer, food bank president and CEO. “Morgan Stanley is a terrific partner for our organization, and we are grateful for the support its employees have shown by donating their time and through generous contributions.”
“We are honored to help the Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida and join in its important fight against child hunger,” said Morgan Stanley Fort Myers Branch Manager Jason Michael Duke.
Vincent Colucci, Morgan Stanley Complex Manager in Naples, Florida added, “With an engaged employee base and a culture of giving back, our employees volunteer regularly at Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida and we are delighted to extend our support through this grant to provide even more children with the foods they need to develop, learn and thrive.”
Since 2009, the Foundation has partnered with Feeding America to support food bank programs that help end hunger in the United States. In that time, Morgan Stanley has supported 117 food banks in 41 states with grants for child nutrition programs, and more recently, produce programs. For more than 50 years, Morgan Stanley has been committed to helping children get a healthy start in life and having access to food is essential to this mission.
“More than 12 million children in America live at risk of hunger,” said Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, CEO of Feeding America. “In order to solve hunger, we need strong partners that are willing to make long-term investments in our strategies. We are grateful to Morgan Stanley for their crucial support these last ten years.”