One Country Project Partners with Community Organizations on the Frontlines of Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:     

April 3, 2020  

CONTACT: [email protected]    

One Country Project Partners with Community Organizations on the Frontlines of Fighting the COVID-19 Pandemic

“OCP works every day to help bridge the gap between our nation’s rural communities and urban and suburban communities to show we are better when we understand each other as one country. We hope these financial grants will help communities of all stripes better wade through this health crisis,” stated the One Country Project Board.

OCP provided financial grants to:

• Support Farmers Restaurant Group’s work to serve 600 meals to the United States Capitol Police and send 200 loaves of bread, baked with North Dakotan milled flower, to D.C. Central Kitchen to feed citizens across the District
• Support the Spirit Lake Tribe Food Distribution Program to increase its capacity to provide nutritious meals to tribe members and others who live on the reservation in Fort Totten, North Dakota
• Support the Guilford Education Alliance in Guilford, North Carolina with its efforts to provide refurbished laptops and mobile internet devices to students who need technology as they transition to distance learning
• Support the Black Belt Community Foundation’s Coronavirus Relief Fund, which is providing personal protective equipment to local essential businesses, donating to food pantries, and developing cultural and educational programming for local youth in 12 Alabama counties
• Support the Hoosier Veterans Assistance Foundation in central Indiana, which provides transitional housing to veterans experiencing homelessness, employment assistance for veterans searching for employment, and supply food, clothing, and hygiene pantry for veterans in need
• Support the Seasons Center for Behavioral Health in northwest Iowa with its efforts providing a full suite of behavioral health services to the diverse communities in the area

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The One Country Project, led by former Senators Heidi Heitkamp and Joe Donnelly, is working to promote greater opportunities for rural communities and ensure leaders earn their support. One Country is reengaging with rural Americans, serving as a clearinghouse of research and information for rural Americans, and working to ensure leaders regain trust by fighting for these communities. To learn more, visit the website, OneCountryProject.org.  

Farmers Restaurant Group

The Farmers Restaurant Group story began in 2005 when the members of North Dakota Farmers Union (NDFU) began looking for ways to bring their products directly to consumers. They were interested in developing a restaurant where guests could have access to, and benefit from, food grown, raised, and harvested on American family farms. Where the foundation of the restaurant is rooted in the notion that family farming was, and remains, essential to our nation’s well-being. For more about Farmers Restaurant Group, please visit their website, www.farmersrestaurantgroup.com

About Spirit Lake Tribe Food Distribution Program

The Spirit Lake Tribe Food Distribution Program is a function of the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) program, which is administered at the federal level by the Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Spirit Lake Tribe’s program helps feed those living on the reservation, educated community members on healthy eating, and operates community gardens that provide fresh ingredients. For more information, visit the website, http://www.spiritlakenation.com/programs/food-distribution-progam/.

About Guilford Education Alliance

Guilford Education Alliance is an independent nonprofit that galvanizes the community in support of quality public education for all students. The most important part of its name is Alliance. The organization is an alliance of people and organizations investing time, talent and resources in support of Guilford County Schools. For more information on Guilford Education Alliance, visit their website, https://guilfordeducationalliance.org/.

About Black Belt Community Foundation

The mission of the Black Belt Community Foundation is to forge a collective stream of giving that transforms our 12-county region and connects those interested in having an impact in this region with nonprofits that are making a difference today. Founded in 2004 with the idea that those living and working in the Black Belt best knew the area’s challenges and opportunities, the Black Belt Community Foundation actively puts needed resources into the region that make a lasting impact. For more information on the Coronavirus Relief Fund visit http://blackbeltfound.org/covid-19-response-funds/.

About Hoosier Veterans Assistance Foundation (HVAF)

HVAF is working to end homelessness among veterans. Through a unique partnership with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and many community organizations, HVFA provides housing and re-integration services for homeless veterans and programs to prevent at-risk veterans from becoming homeless. These services include employment specialists who help veterans overcome barriers to find steady employment, clothing, non-perishable food, and hygiene product pantry, and advocacy events throughout the community to raise awareness of the needs of Indiana’s veterans. For more information and to donate to the efforts, visit https://www.hvafofindiana.org/.

Seasons Center for Behavioral Health

Founded in 1959, Seasons Center for Behavioral Health continues to be a leading, comprehensive behavioral health center in the northwest region of Iowa. Offering a broad range of behavioral health Services, Seasons recognizes that investing in behavioral health is investing in a community’s economic, education, and health and human services systems. Seasons strives to empower individuals so they might become active, contributing members of their communities. For more information on Seasons’ services, please visit www.seasonscenter.org or call 1-800-242-5101.