Edwardsville Community Foundation helps twigs purchase new equipment to feed hungry children

EDWARDSVILLE – The Edwardsville Community Foundation was proud to recently award Twigs®, a local non-profit organization that helps provide free meals for children, with a check for $4,793 to purchase a new forklift. The forklift will be used to help volunteers load and unload boxes of food which they deliver to children in need throughout the school year and during the summer.

Twigs was founded in 2011 by Lisa Guilliams, Pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Granite City, to provide free summer lunches to children participating in the National School Lunch Program. Six years ago, Twigs added a free monthly food market offering fresh produce, along with fruit and dairy products. In 2014, they also began providing free ‘Pack-a-Sack’ bags of food to local school children at risk of having nothing to eat over the weekend.

Guilliams said the number of children and communities Twigs served has grown more than ten times since the organization first started seven years ago - from roughly 2,500 lunches in 2011 to more than 100,000 lunches in 32 Metro East communities last year. Guilliams said that also means ten times the number of boxes that have to be packed and moved each day, which is why the Edwardsville Community Foundation’s contribution is so critical. “This forklift literally is a back-saver for us,” said Guilliams. “Our volunteers pack and lift over 200- plus boxes each day. It is a real strain on their body. This new forklift will make our volunteers’ jobs easier and faster.”

Edwardsville Community Foundation Executive Director, Pam Farrar, said their grant committee was proud to support an organization that has such a wide impact in the community. “Twigs is really an inspiring organization. They have no staff or promotional budget, yet the number of children they serve has grown exponentially over the last several years through word-of-mouth. It was eye-opening for us to realize how great the need really is in the Metro East area and in parts of the District 7 school district. We feel grateful that we’re able to provide them with the funds they need to buy a forklift. The equipment has already been purchased and it’s gratifying to see the difference it’s making for these volunteers,” said Farrar.

Guilliams said donations of time, money and talent are always needed at Twigs. Volunteers interested in the summer lunch program must be 17 years or older, pass a background check and purchase a Twigs t-shirt to wear when distributing food. Younger lunch volunteers must be accompanied by an adult who has met these criteria. To learn more, to volunteer or donate, go to twigsforkids.com or call 618-876-0723. For more information about the Edwardsville Community Foundation, go to www.edwardsvillecommunityfoundation.org/ or call Jessica Williams at 618-772-2349.

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