LAFAYETTE – Food Finders Food Bank announced today it has been selected to receive a $2,000 grant as part of the inaugural Restaurant Community Grant Program from the Darden Foundation , the charitable arm of Darden Restaurants Inc.

The Restaurant Community Grant Program is a local grants program intended to help support nonprofit organizations in the hundreds of communities Darden and its restaurant brands serve. The donation will enable Food Finders’s project to end hunger across Mid-North Indiana for the nearly 97,000 food insecure individuals within the 16-county service area through distribution of the Mobile Pantry Program.

Restaurants within the Darden family – Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, The Capital Grille, Bahama Breeze and Seasons 52 – are helping to award more than $1.7 million in local grants to nearly 900 exceptional nonprofit organizations nationwide. Nonprofits receiving grants support one of Darden’s three key focus areas: access to postsecondary education, preservation of natural resources and hunger.

The Darden foundation grant will help Food Finders ensure there is enough food to sustain the Mobile Pantry Program which grew by 55% in 2011. Each Mobile Pantry distribution provides roughly 35 pounds of food to approximately 140 households.  

“Each grant is not just a check – it is an opportunity to make an impact, from providing essential supplies to food banks in Oregon, to mentoring students in Phoenix and supporting environmental education in New England,” said Drew Madsen, president and chief operating officer of Darden Restaurants, Inc. “Our service philosophy extends far beyond the walls of our restaurants. These grants bring that philosophy to life by helping to develop a better future for those we serve, one community at a time.”

“Providing food for families who are food insecure enables them to move on to address other needs such as utilities, rent, and transportation and improve their lives and those of their children. Food Finders is very grateful for the Darden Foundation’s grant” says Food Finder Food Bank, Executive Director, Katy Bunder.

For more information about the Darden Foundation, please visit http://www.darden.com/commitment/community.asp . For additional information on Food Finders Food Bank please visit www.food-finders.org.