Hope Center Macomb Closing Leaves Void for Families in Need

(Originally published Oct. 11, 2016) MACOMB COUNTY — Hope Center Macomb in Fraser has served 25,000 families a year will close on Nov. 1. The Groesbeck Highway facility, which offers coffee, haircuts and fellowship in addition to food, can't handle the growing demand, organizers said.

It costs about $547,000 a year to run Hope Center Macomb, which includes staff salaries, building costs, supplies, insurance and other expenses. Steve Gibson, executive director of Hope Center Macomb, told The Detroit News it’s been difficult to find funding for the pantry as it competes with other agencies for the same resources.

As Hope Center closes, area food pantry directors are scrambling to fill the void. Other options in Macomb County include St. Paul of Tarsus Catholic Church in Clinton Township , the Salvation Army in Warren, Metropolitan Church of the Nazarene in Roseville and Mount Calvary Family Community Center in south Warren. Linda Azar, program manager for the Macomb Food Program, provides food twice a month for more than 50 pantries in the county. She recommends that pantries utilize federally-funded programs such as the USDA Emergency Food Assistance Program, which provides emergency food and nutrition assistance at no cost.

» For more on this, go to The Detroit News.

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