They had been serving about 5,000 people a year. This money should last a decade or more. Good job, everybody who contributed.

no offense but if your helping 5000 people a year. that is only about $70 a person. Don't know how you figure that is 10 years worth of help. Maybe i don't know what you meant.

I wonder how many months of food that will supply for Athens County. This is so awesome. :)

Right now their annual budget is about $60,000 and with the pot now at $426K between the two fundraisers, that's seven years.

Here's a link that tells you more about the pantry.

https://www.foodpantries.org/li/oh_45701_athens-county-fo...

Mark, all great questions, and according to a post by the Food Bank on their Facebook page, they explain that they are beyond overwhelmed and will be convening their board to brainstorm ways in which they can best utilize the funds. This is obviously something none of them have ever thought about in regards of having an infusion of major funds.

I should note this isn't the only food bank in the county.

But to answer your question, a sudden, unexpected windfall like this can be overwhelming and scary. What do you do with it? Is this a one time thing, or will donations be higher long-term? It's impossible to say. Are expectations going to be attached to this money, and will that pressure affect your decision making? Do you hire new people, compensate your staff better, improve facilities? Can you do deliveries now?

It's incredibly easy to spend rashly and then end up costing yourself more in the long run. My educated guess is they'll keep most or all of the money in reserve for next fiscal year and take the time to build a better-than-expected budget for FY 2021. Some of it may go to shoring up this year's budget if they've been behind on fundraising for this fiscal year.

And for the other question: No, it's not sufficient, and even this budget wouldn't be. Money goes fast for operations like this and the need never subsides. It can really feel against raging against the dying of the light. And because they're a small operation in a poor, low-population area, it's harder to make the dollars stretch. Economies of scale and diverse partnerships are not going to be there like food banks in metro areas.

I'm going to link the most recent annual report for the Houston Food Bank. They took in $342 million to deliver 122 million meals. And they have the advantages of a dedicated warehouse, partnerships with foundations, corporations, and local pro sports teams, and thousands of volunteers. The dollar-to-food ratio is going to be much better than a rural foodbank. There are, of course, many, many differences, but it'll at least give you a rough idea of how this works.

https://www.houstonfoodbank.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/1...

Here's a link ACFP's numbers: http://athenscountyfoodpantry.org/by-the-numbers /

By the looks of it, they do a great job with what they have. They appear to be smart and disciplined. But the need is greater than what they're able to do.

The efforts of any charity, of course, is plugging a finger into a dike. Real change requires systemic reform.

Perspective

We are all excited about the outpouring of support, and it is incredible - To help feed appx 5,000 in need.

And the total $'s is still not equal to 1 years salary of 2 separate local sports coaches....

Per this point and many raised by Jeffrey, a key challenge is how to leverage these (and any others dollars): (Safely) Investing, using funds as seed and/or matching dollars to attract additional donations and grants, better competing for corporate partners, etc., while also addressing any immediate accounting fires. I'm vice-chair on a team charged with creating a food council and organizational program in a similarly rural area of NC. The need is great -- not just in providing food, but educating on storage, prep, cooking, etc. and coordinating with, and complementing other groups (churches, etc.) that also provide services in a manner that does not trigger animosity or competition (a local organization getting such a windfall can be akin to a neighbor or relative winning the lottery).

Sounds like the Athen's group is up to the task. The community need is certainly there.

Society funds what it most cares about. Coaches and administrators make what they make because we allow or support it. And places like food pantries struggle to get by because we don't support them.

As for investing the money, that would be unusual. I don't know if it's tax reasons or management reasons, but a non-profit of their size with an endowment or portfolio would be very unusual, if not unheard of.

Not that it's comparable, but the Southeast Ohio History Center (formerly the Athens County Historical Society & Museum) has a multimillion dollar endowment.

All things in due time. With a national fundraising move to feed the poor in Athens County, now is not the time to raise high five figures for a statue.

So,potentially,they'd have to wait till January 2025 do any big investing ? :-)

He has one. It's a called a Heisman.