Loaves & Fishes receives $297,000 to enhance evening and weekend hours of food distribution
Naperville– January 30, 2024 – Loaves & Fishes Community Services provides healthy food and impactful programs to promote self-sufficiency to over 8,000 people a week and is proud to announce its selection as a partner in Endeavor Health’s 2024 Community Investment Fund (CIF). This year, Loaves & Fishes has been awarded $297,000 to increase access to healthy food by extending their evening and weekend hours of food distribution, aimed at promoting increased access to food.
“We are deeply honored to receive this generous award from Endeavor Health,” said Mike Havala, President/CEO. “Their support is a testament to their commitment to making a positive impact on the community and will play a crucial role in advancing our mission. We are truly grateful for this partnership.”
Endeavor Health selected Loaves & Fishes Community Services as one of 43 local organizations across the Chicagoland area to collaborate on programs focused on behavioral health, violence prevention, housing and food insecurity, access to care and workforce development.
“Our Community Investment Fund has made a remarkable impact since its launch in 2022, touching over 211,000 lives and supporting a significant expansion of behavioral health counseling, bilingual health education and mobile medical services in our communities,” said Kristen Murtos, Chief Innovation & Transformation Officer at Endeavor Health. “At Endeavor Health, we are not just funders but conveners, bringing together diverse groups to cultivate collaboration and innovation. We are thrilled to grow and deepen the impact of our Community Investment Fund this year, marking a significant step forward in our commitment to enhancing health and wellness across the communities we serve.”
For more information about Loaves & Fishes and its efforts in the expansion of service, please visit loaves-fishes.org. To learn more about Endeavor Health’s Community Investment Fund, visit endeavorhealth.org/cif.
About Loaves & Fishes Community ServicesLoaves & Fishes Community Services is a registered 501(3) organization serving more than 8,000 people a week by providing healthy food and impactful programs for self-sufficiency. It is one of the largest food pantries in the state of Illinois. Clients receive a healthy variety of food, including fresh fruits and vegetables, milk, and eggs. The Loaves & Fishes CARES programs help clients become self-sufficient through opportunities such as emergency assistance for rent or utilities, assistance with public benefits, car donations, tax preparation, job readiness, budget, and credit classes, and Moving Up, a 20-session intensive to help clients overcome barriers preventing them from becoming self-sufficient. Loaves & Fishes serves DuPage, Will, Kane, and Kendall counties. Loaves & Fishes Grocery Market and administrative offices are located in Naperville, and their Food Distribution Hub is located in Aurora. For more information, visit loaves-fishes.org.
About Endeavor Health
Endeavor Health℠ is a Chicagoland-based integrated health system driven by our mission to help everyone in our communities be their best. As Illinois’ third-largest health system and third-largest medical group, we proudly serve an area of more than 4.2 million residents across six northeast Illinois counties. Our more than 27,000 team members and more than 7,100 physician and advance practice provider partners are the heart of our organization, delivering seamless access to personalized, pioneering, world-class patient care across more than 300 ambulatory locations and nine hospitals, including eight Magnet-recognized acute care hospitals – Edward (Naperville), Elmhurst, Evanston, Glenbrook (Glenview), Highland Park, Northwest Community (Arlington Heights) Skokie and Swedish (Chicago) and Linden Oak Behavioral Health Hospital (Naperville). For more information, visit endeavorhealth.org.