Local Matters, whose veggie van, community gardens, cooking classes and other programs have helped feed hundreds of thousands of central Ohio residents since 2008, has told its supporters it will cease operations June 6.
“We haven’t been quiet about our recent emergency funding needs, and we’ve now reached the tipping point,” an email sent out by the organization at 9 a.m. May 29 read. “Staff labored until the bitter end for what ended up being more than a temporary setback.”
Local Matters cited declining donations and cuts in federal funding as factors in its decision.
“No decision as a board has been harder than this one,” Chairman Luka Papalko said in a news release from Local Matters. “We exhausted every option before arriving here — and that doesn’t make it hurt any less.”
Local Matters was founded in 2008 by Noreen Warnock and Michael Jones and operated through two major economic upheavals: the Great Recession of its founding year and the COVID-19 pandemic that began in 2000. Its most recent annual report said the organization has helped more than 200,000 people in central Ohio.
Executive Director Yolanda Owens said Local Matters will seek ways to continue its programs through other providers.
Follow Dispatch dining reporter Bob Vitale on Instagram at @dispatchdining. You can reach him directly at rvitale@dispatch.com.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Local Matters says it will cease its food-assistance efforts June 6
Reporting by Bob Vitale, Columbus Dispatch / The Columbus Dispatch
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