United Way receives $100K donation in response to SNAP benefit suspension

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (KQTV) -- The United Way of Greater St. Joseph has received a $100,000 grant from Mosaic Life Care and the Mosaic Life Care Foundation to assist with food insecurity in the community.

Kylee Strough, president of United Way of Greater St. Joseph, said some of the grant money will go towards creating meal kits.

“We will be using some of that money to source more food and purchase it so that we can have those meal kits assembled and continue to distribute them throughout the next couple of weeks,” she said.

Strough said United Way felt grateful to receive the grant from Mosaic Life Care.

“They saw the need and internally said they want to help, and I think also we were really humbled that they selected United Way to be their partner in caring because there's a lot of directions they could have gone,” Strough said.

Julie Gaddie, president of the Mosaic Life Care Foundation, said they were motivated to donate because of the challenges residents were facing due to the reduction in SNAP benefits.

“We knew this is an opportunity to partner with Mosaic Life Care and other community agencies and businesses to try to support families during this challenging time,” she said.

Strough said United Way will address the needs of the community over the coming days and weeks.

“We're also open to hearing, I guess, you know, meal kits, this one strategy that if you are a part of an organization or an agency or your household and you're saying and seeing all these things offered, but they're not meeting my need, please let us know,” she said.

United Way is working to make food accessible to local households in need.