Lowcountry Food Bank establishes foundation, endowment

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The Lowcountry Food Bank recently established the Lowcountry Food Bank Foundation and the Patricia S. Walker Endowment to provide stable sources of income for the food bank throughout the calendar year.

Both new organizations will serve as the main sources of funding for the food bank, increasing its capacity to reach food-insecure individuals and families in outlying areas of the 10 coastal counties that the organization serves.

"The Lowcountry Food Bank Foundation is an innovative way to further increase our capacity to serve our food-insecure neighbors," said Nick Osborne, LCFB president and CEO, in a statement. "The foundation supports our mission to lead the fight against hunger now and empowers our work for years to come, ensuring our neighbors have access to healthy food when they need it most.”

Businesses and individuals can now make out their tax-deductible donations to the Lowcountry Food Bank Foundation, which will also donate any annual investment earnings and estate gifts it receives back into the food bank, providing perpetual support to help grow the Patricia S. Walker Endowment.

The endowment has been established with an initial investment of more than $1 million and will serve as the main source of funds for the organization’s senior and child hunger programs, mobile food distributions and emergency food distributions.

The creation of the foundation as a nonprofit organization was approved unanimously by the food bank’s board of directors this fall, and the endowment was created in honor of former Lowcountry Food Bank president and CEO Pat Walker, who retired in January 2021.