The EnergyUnited Foundation recently approved a grant for $10,000 to Our Daily Bread Food Pantry at the Episcopal Church of the Ascension in Advance.

The funds will be used to acquire food for community members in need. Much of the food they provide is procured through the Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC.

The partnership allows the pantry to acquire a significant quantity of food and to obtain rescued food for a minimal shared maintenance fee. The Ascension Church covers the costs of all utility bills so that every dollar received by Our Daily Bread goes directly to those in need.

Missy Lefelar, Second Harvest’s development manager of corporate, foundation & faith-based gifts said: “It is such a wonderful opportunity to work with Our Daily Bread Food Pantry. I know that the food we provide is going to children in the local schools, families, and individuals in the community that don’t have the financial means to regularly feed their families. Our Daily Bread Food Pantry really is a life line for many of these people.”

Executive director of the food pantry, the Rev. Dr. Chantal McKinney, is passionate about helping those in need.

“We give food generously to those who experience food insecurity, and in turn we have received funds generously to help us continue to provide for over a thousand people each month,” McKinney said. “We have been blessed by the EnergyUnited grant, as well as the continued generosity of church members and partners in the community. Thanks to every gift we are able to continually give to those in Davie County.”

Our Daily Bread Food Pantry is open every other Tuesday from 2:30-5 p.m. and each Saturday afternoon at 1. There are several church members who volunteer each week.

One young member, Sidnee Everhart, began volunteering when she was in second grade. She came home from school one day and told her mother that she needed to do something to help a classmate who didn’t have food at her home. She and her mom brainstormed an idea and talked with members of the church about creating the Our Daily Bread Food Pantry.

Also a Girl Scout, she worked along with several church members to make this happen.

“Of course, she had a lot of help but she really was the one who inspired the idea for the food pantry and worked hard with many others to make it a reality,” McKinney said.

Sidnee is 16 and attends Salem Academy in Winston-Salem. She also just completed her Girl Scout Gold Award to help expand the food pantry.

“Our Daily Bread Food Pantry looks forward to using the funds granted by Energy United to provide more food for the needy in its community with the funds granted by EnergyUnited,” McKinney said.

“We’re really appreciative of this very generous donation because we know it’s going to feed a lot of people in our community.”