Helping Eleanor's Pantry Feed Thousands

Published On:
May 24, 2018

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Every month, a group of caring, dedicated employees at Arbor Financial Credit Union, appropriately called the Caring Committee, chooses an organization in southwest Michigan who is helping the community, and pledges to donate money, time, or resources in support of that organization.

The Caring Committee is a group of Arbor Financial volunteers dedicated to raising funds, gathering items for donation, and volunteering to support organizations making a difference in our communities. The entire Arbor Financial family selects the areas of focus for the year, whether it be veterans, victims of abuse or neglect, the homeless, the elderly, animal health, or something else.

In the month of March, the committee determined that it would raise money to support Eleanor's Pantry, in Paw Paw. This past week, the committee presented a donation of $1,100 to the all-volunteer organization.

Eleanor’s Pantry has provided both food and non-food based assistance to those in the Paw Paw and Lawton areas since its inception in 2009, but traces its roots back to cooperative efforts to help those in need as far back as the early 1960’s. Since the organization is completely volunteer, that means each donation is used 100% to provide food for the up to 1,000 children and adults the pantry helps to feed each month.

One of the many ways the Caring Committee chooses to help raise funds for these organizations is through their 'Casual for a Cause' initiative. And yes, it's exactly like it sounds. Employees pay a small amount of money in order to be allowed to wear jeans to work on Fridays.

This initiative has raised thousands of dollars over the years, for places like Ministry With Community, Bronson Children’s Hospital, Housing Resources Inc., Kalamazoo Valley Habitat for Humanity, and many others.

It's all part of Arbor Financial's drive to be a force for good in the communities in which we live and work. We are proud to be able to help organization's like Eleanor's Pantry, who are helping those in the community who are in need, just as we are proud to support our employees in their own volunteer efforts, by offering all employees up to eight hours of paid time off that they can use to volunteer for Michigan community groups, school events or credit union committees.

In just the last few months, members of the Caring Committee and other volunteers have planted trees along Millard's Way, with Oshtemo Friends of the Park, and helped prepare the Mattawan Community Garden for planting crops that will eventually find their way to local food pantries. Volunteers have also lent their time to bell ringing for the Salvation Army, around the holidays, driving with Meals on Wheels, working with Habitat for Humanity, and more.

We'll be profiling more stories like this in our blog and on our website in the days, weeks, and months to come. Be sure to watch this space, as well as our social media channels, to learn more.

Also, to learn more about Eleanor’s Pantry, or to donate or volunteer, please click here.

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