$5,000 grant from Hilton Effect Foundation will provide meals in Flint

A $5,000 grant from the Hilton Effect Foundation to the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan will provide 30,000 meals for Flint residents. Hilton Effect Foundation, Hilton’s primary international philanthropic arm, made the donation on behalf of the Hilton Garden Inn Flint Downtown to help support the Food Bank’s mission to support hunger in the Flint community. The grant also initiates a future relationship with Hilton Garden Inn and the hotel team.

Since mid-March of 2020, the Food Bank has distributed more than 49 million pounds of food, including fresh produce, dairy, and protein, throughout its 22-county service area. That is more food than the Food Bank has distributed at any point in its history and is in response to massive need in the counties it serves. Normally, approximately 14 percent of residents in the Food Bank’s 22 counties are in need of food. During the COVID-19 pandemic, that has grown to 40 percent.

“We are seeing a greater need for food than at any point in our 40-year history of serving the community,” said Kara Ross, President and CEO of the Food Bank of Eastern Michigan, in a news release. “We would not be able to meet that need without amazing partners like the Hilton Effect Foundation. Monetary donations are vital to our ability to continue to purchase and transport food and quickly get it to people who need it most through our network of community partners and volunteers. We are grateful for the Hilton Effect Foundation’s support of Flint residents.”

In November of 2020, Hilton Garden Inn opened in downtown Flint in the former Genesee County Savings Bank building. The hotel is a centerpiece of the ongoing revitalization of downtown Flint. The grant to the Food Bank is part of Hilton’s commitment to make an impact in its local communities.

“We are grateful for and proud of the commitment the Hilton Effect Foundation has shown to helping Flint residents,” said Tim Herman, president of Uptown Reinvestment Corp. (URC), the Hilton Garden Inn Flint’s developer and owner, in a news release. “This grant provides direct help to the many people facing unprecedented need during the pandemic and is another example of the positive impact Hilton’s presence in Flint is having on the city and its people.”