Humanity House is looking extra snazzy these days.
The nonprofit recently implemented $25,000 in federal CARES Act/SPARK funds to give its facilities a significant makeover.
Though Humanity House received the grant money given its designation as a food bank. they were only allowed to use the funds to provide increased capacity to serve food and not on food itself.
At any rate, they decided to dream big.
“We started on Dec. 1, and were spending about 18 hours a day up here,” said Tracy Keagle, director of the nonprofit. “We had to have it done by Dec. 30.”
That’s because CARES/SPARK funds had to be expended by the end of the year or be forfeited.
Which meant getting the lead out.
One of the main projects involved knocking down a wall in the pantry area adjoining “Grandma’s Kitchen,” thereby expanding the room by several square feet.
This allowed food pantry holdings to be increased, as well as simply providing more room for staff to move around (and not have to carry items as far).
“Now neither one of us has to carry 50-pound bags of food,” remarked Keagle.
She and others then converted a door in this same room into a pick-up window, so that residents can simply approach it from the outside to grab meals.
Keagle said that this is especially good, since prior to COVID-19, residents would often crowd the main office as they waited.
Outside the pick-up window is also the new location of the community Blessings Box, where you can drop off food donations, toiletries and other items.
“I love my window,” Keagle said.
The nonprofit was further able to implement SPARK money to purchase two large stainless steel refrigeration units, each for around $1,300.
Since a dance studio is no longer operating out of the most westerly room of the building along Jefferson Ave., the nonprofit decided to convert this space as the primary entrance to the food pantry.
The first item on the list, Keagle said, was creating a wheelchair ramp at the entrance.
“We had a guy in a wheelchair that actually crawled in our door,” she said. “I felt so bad.” Hence she made a promise to make the addition.
New black doors on sliding tracks were hung in the west room, too, and a closet there had shelving installed in order to turn it into a community coat closet.
