Rivers Crossing Life Center receives grant from Ozarks Food Harvest
The Rivers Crossing Life Center, the senior center that serves St. Clair County, recently received a capacity-building grant as part of the Ozarks Food Harvest’s $1 million investment in agency infrastructure in southwest Missouri.
The center that serves people 60 and older in Osceola and St. Clair County, will receive $450 for the purchase of new thermal food transportation bags and $2,000 to purchase foods through the Ozarks Food Harvest.
Rivers Crossing was one of more than 70 organizations chosen by Ozarks Food Harvest to receive an agency capacity grant to assist with hunger-relief efforts.
“This grant will be a blessing as we serve adults 60 and older in St. Clair County with hot meals served in the dining room four days a week and meals delivered to the homes of qualified seniors,” said Chris McCune, Regional Director for Care Connection for Aging Services, which operates the senior center. “The increased funding will help us to serve more seniors during these times of economic uncertainty.”
The center serves about 400 meals weekly in its dining room and another 1,400 weekly to homebound seniors.
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America food bank for southwest Missouri, serving 270 charities across 28 Ozarks counties. This capacity building investment is part of The Food Bank’s multi-faceted strategy to address needs identified in Missouri’s Food Assistance and Hunger in the Heartland 2021 report conducted by the MU Interdisciplinary Center for Food Security.
“These grant funds are an investment in the future of our community’s food system,” said Bart Brown, president/CEO of Ozarks Food Harvest. “Increasing access to food is key as our network of hunger-relief charities continue to deal with the expanding cost of food and fuel.”
Rivers Crossing, at 5215 Business Highway 13 NE in Osceola, is one of 21 locations operated by Care Connection for Aging Services, a nonprofit area agency on aging serving 13 West Central Missouri counties, including St. Clair. The agency’s mission is to provide opportunities to create positive aging experiences.
About Ozarks Food Harvest — The Food Bank
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America food bank for southwest Missouri, serving 270 charities across 28 Ozarks counties. The Food Bank reaches 50,000 individuals monthly and provides more than 20 million meals annually. Learn more at ozarksfoodharvest.org, facebook.com/ozarksfoodharvest or twitter.com/ozksfoodharvest.