A Message of Gratitude from our Executive Director Upon His Retirement
Over the past 11 years, our strength has been our volunteers, community partners and supporters joining to provide healthy food and nutritional education programs to meet the most pressing needs of our neighbors. In looking back at 2020, we’ll remember a year with daily reminders of inequality, compounded by barriers to services, resources and food.
During the first six months of fiscal 2020, we strengthened our distribution to meet our community’s ongoing demands. However, when the pandemic touched Chester County in March, we saw an immediate uptick in urgent food requests and catastrophic growth in the number of families who found themselves in need of food, many for the first time. Take a look at our FY2020 Impact Report for a look at our work this fiscal year (July 2019 – June 2020)
We were able to redirect and increase the volume of distribution through our well-established channels, and moved our most essential, face-to-face services online for safety. Addressing the pandemic has streamlined our responsiveness, and created new, efficient ways to reach our community.
Before the COVID-19 crisis, I had begun to think about retirement. Clearly, the timing was not right. Now that our systems to cope with the crisis are in place, I feel the time has arrived for me to step aside. The board supports my decision, and we are laying the groundwork together to assure a smooth transition, under the supervision of our founding Chairman, Bob McNeil.
Working with incredible people, who everyday have given all they can to help improve the lives of our neighbors, has been the greatest privilege of my career. I am forever grateful to our heroic staff and our many supporters who have shared our vision for better equity, here in Chester County. I leave behind an organization with a strong foundation, further fortified by the efforts of these last few months. CCFB remains committed to moving our community beyond hunger.
With Gratitude,
Larry Welsch
Executive Director
“ You haven’t lived until you’ve done something for someone who can never repay you”
– John Bunyan
photo credit (Chester County Food Bank): Larry was presented with a special bowl by a local potter, Nell Hazinski, that is inscribed with “Thank you for helping to fill the bowls of so many.”