Chicago is Part of Nearly $20 Million to National Organizations Supporting Independent Restaurants, Closing the Hunger Gap and More

Contact: Liza Dee, ldee@grubhub.com

NEW YORK – Chicago community organizations are set to receive $658,000 this year from the Grubhub Community Fund (GCF), according to an announcement today. Grants will be distributed to organizations supporting independent restaurants, closing the hunger gap, and creating new opportunities in the food and beverage industry. The news comes as part of the GCF’s broader announcement of $19.8 million in grants to 27 organizations across the country, with additional programs and new partnerships still to be announced in the months ahead.

“Grubhub is committed to ensuring Chicago’s restaurants and neighborhoods not only survive but thrive as the city continues to recover from the pandemic,” said Dave Tovar, senior vice president of communications and government relations at Grubhub. “These grants are just the start. In the year ahead, the Grubhub Community Fund will deepen our longstanding support for restaurants, drivers and diners through grants and partnerships that will lift up independent businesses, help close the hunger gap and workforce development opportunities within our industry.”

Among the Chicago organizations that will receive grants through the GCF are Nourishing Hope (formerly Lakeview Pantry), Youth Guidance, World Relief Chicago and World Relief Quad Cities, the Union League Boys and Girls Clubs of Chicago, the Ethiopian Community Association of Chicago, Jewish Child & Family Services of Chicago, Heartland Human Care Services Inc., and the East Central Illinois Refugee Mutual Assistance Center.

Nourishing Hope, formerly known as Lakeview Pantry, is a dynamic social services organization providing free food, mental health counseling and social services to any Chicagoan in need. In the months ahead, the Grubhub Community Fund grant will support Nourishing Hope’s innovative online market program, which includes the delivery of free groceries to clients unable to visit a distribution center.

“Grubhub’s investment in our work will allow us to expand our essential services, meeting even more people where they are,” said Kellie O’Connell, Nourishing Hope CEO. “The Grubhub Community Fund and Grubhub leadership have continued to step up in creative and exciting new ways to support our work and help us push the envelope through technology and innovation, empowering Nourishing Hope to serve more than 75,000 families across Chicago this year.”

“We are beyond excited about our partnership with Grubhub. The communities we serve in Chicago are among the most impacted by food insecurity, and support from the Grubhub Community Fund will bring healthy, delicious meals to more than 15,000 youth, provide them with resources and skills to make healthy food choices, and enrich the communities we serve through our annual Thanksgiving community dinners,” said Logan Heggemann, senior director of development at the Union League Boys & Girls Clubs. “Thank you to Grubhub for believing in the power of a healthy meal and putting their money where their mouth is by investing in Union League Boys & Girls Clubs and the more than 15,000 youth we serve at our 21 locations in Chicago. We can’t do this critical work feeding our communities without them.”

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