The charitable arm of Pittsburgh-based PNC is teaming up with the United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania to create a fund to help feed families in the region during the coronavirus pandemic.
The PNC Foundation made a $1 million donation to the United Way to create the Students and Families Food Relief Fund. It will be used to partner with Eat’n Park and others to provide more than 250,000 meals for families who need it most.
The program is working to fill a gap in weekend service not covered by government agencies, according to a news release.
“We believe that we are stronger together, and at no time has that been more critical,” PNC Foundation President Sally McCrady said in a statement.
Eat’n Park last week provided meals for 420 students in the Duquesne City School District when its provider couldn’t because of the pandemic, and the restaurant group also supplied 4,000 meals to Pittsburgh Public Schools for students to take home for the weekend, according to a news release.
The Pittsburgh-based company is providing the meals at cost.
“We are honored to team up to do what we do best – prepare safe, nourishing meals for local families during this extraordinary time,” Eat’n Park President and CEO Jeff Broadhurst said in a statement.
The United Way also has a 2-1-1 helpline that people can use to get the help they need. Calls to the line have doubled recently because of covid-19, according to a news release.
“This is a shining example of the worst of times bringing out the very best in people,” United Way of Southwestern Pennsylvania President and CEO Bobbi Watt Geer said in a statement.
