Challenge Met: God’s Kitchen Exceeds Fundraising Quota to Claim Their Grant

The Bolger Foundation is pleased to announce that Fall 2022 challenge grant recipient God’s Kitchen has more than met their required fundraising quota of $25,000. Having raised $27,310 altogether, the faith-based nonprofit organization will now receive $25,000 in matching funds from The Bolger Foundation.az

Based in Palatka, FL, and serving Putnam County, God’s Kitchen delivers some 1,200 nutritious meals each month to more than 110 homebound or food-insecure county residents: 5 hot meals per person, 3 days a week. Their $50,000 in total funding will go toward purchasing the building where they currently have their kitchen facilities and paving its parking lot.

God’s Kitchen was able to raise the necessary monies thanks to a serendipitous partnership with Knights of Columbus Council No. 5857. The two organizations first connected when COVID-19 restrictions forced God’s Kitchen to find a new place to prepare the meals they deliver. The local Knights of Columbus chapter offered them the use of their kitchen if God’s Kitchen would pay for utilities and insurance.

Then the Knights of Columbus decided to sell their building in order to fund a scholarship program for Putnam County high school seniors. They offered it to God’s Kitchen at its current tax value and agreed to hold the mortgage. Meanwhile, God’s Kitchen had paid for updates to the building’s kitchen, wiring, plumbing, and roof, so the Knights of Columbus accepted the cost of those improvements as a down payment.

Both agencies were excited by the charitable synergy their complementary projects generated: Purchasing a place to cook meals for needy senior citizens would pave the way to helping deserving senior students further their education. The Palatka Daily News announced the joint venture on December 8, 2022, and urged the community to be forthcoming with donations to the grant-matching building fund. By New Year’s Day, 2023, the coffers were filled.

“The funding provided by The Bolger Foundation for the purchase of our building will assure our community and referral  resources that we are here to stay,” says Dennis Childers, executive director of God’s Kitchen. “It provides us the security to grow and improve our facility as we reach more people who need our services. Ownership of this building and property proves our future.”

Trustees of The Bolger Foundation were unanimous in their delight at hearing that God’s Kitchen had been so successful in their fundraising.

“The Bolger Foundation commends those who supported God’s Kitchen to help meet the challenge,” said JT Bolger, president of the foundation. “This is a win-win for the entire community. God’s Kitchen gets a permanent home, and the local community students get scholarships from the Knights of Columbus. The impact of the God’s Kitchen grant will be felt for years to come.”