By Chris Kosiba
Generous Hands, Inc., the non-profit organization that supports local families with food insecurities, has been the recipient of many charitable donations since its inception more than 20 years ago. One of the most reliable contributors to the success of its mission has been the Meijer store in Portage.
Thomas “TC” Peters, store director at Meijer #196, says when they are asked for donations, they approve the requests based on the funds allocated for philanthropy. According to Peters, this particular Meijer store donates to many organizations throughout the southern region of Kalamazoo County which includes Vicksburg, Schoolcraft and Portage Central schools, Twelve Baskets, Salvation Army and Generous Hands.
“I love Generous Hands. I make sure I can personally be there for events. They do such a great job in the community. It’s great to see how much Generous Hands means to (the clients), they know their names, the kids recognize them. I do anything I can to help,” says Peters.
Over the past decade, Meijer has donated to Generous Hands monetarily and also by providing much needed supplies and volunteers. “The $5,000 and $10,000 (donations) made a tremendous difference on the expenses for our program, food expenses and special events,” says Sheri Louis, executive director of Generous Hands.
Contributions include actively participating in the annual Back to School Bonanza. Historically, Meijer has donated backpacks, snacks, and generous gift cards to purchase school supplies and volunteers at the Bonanza, says Louis.
In addition to supporting the Back to School Bonanza, Meijer has also been very involved in the South County Community Services/Generous Hands Christmas party for their clients. “Their involvement with our Christmas party has been a game changer,” Louis says. In addition to having several volunteers participate at the party by playing games and helping with crafts, Meijer also provides gift bags with snacks, and helps with cleaning up after the event. An added bonus was the generous gift of Nannette Davis, retail administrative assistant for Meijer #196, who donated nearly 400 Beanie Babies in pristine condition that were given to children after they saw Santa. She has been involved with helping Generous Hands after first becoming active with South County Community Services, she said.
“Generous Hands is my favorite organization; that’s my group,” says Davis. “Sheri’s an angel on earth. In my heart, I love what they do and I want to help in any way I can.”
But those two events are just the icing on the cake of charitable contributions that Meijer #196 has done for Generous Hands. The list also includes: gift cards for feminine hygiene products for the Period Project, partnership with Business to Business (B2B), donation of 300 jars of peanut butter and the plastic bags used for Power Packs, the weekly packs given to families to help provide food support. According to Peters, Meijer in Portage will continue to support Generous Hands in the future.
