Washington Foundation donates to food banks, pantries and rescue missions

Press release

MISSOULA — Working with the Missoula-based Montana Food Bank Network, the Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation has selected 75 food banks, food pantries, rescue missions and homeless shelters across Montana to receive additional grant funds to aid them in helping Montana’s most vulnerable citizens.

The recipients included the Havre Food Bank, Chinook Food Pantry and Harlem Food Pantry.

The Foundation’s special Holiday Giving Program is designed to give an extra boost to basic needs organizations around the holiday season.

In Montana, 1 out of 8 people struggle with hunger and the numbers are continuing to rise despite increased efforts to reduce it.

“Basic needs organizations go above and beyond to ensure that the needs of our fellow Montanans are met — a goal that becomes more and more challenging each year,” said the foundation’s Executive Director, Mike Halligan. “This special holiday program is designed so that struggling families and high-risk groups can enjoy the holidays, knowing where their next meal is coming from.”

The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation is the major philanthropic organization for The Washington Companies and the Washington family. The foundation strives to better the human condition by supporting programs and services that give people the tools to enhance the quality of their lives and to benefit society as a whole. Funding for the foundation comes from personal contributions from the Washington Family and annual contributions from The Washington Companies. Since its inception in 1988, foundation giving and the Washington Family’s personal contributions and pledges to charitable causes total more than a quarter of a billion dollars.