DENVER, Colorado — Almost 300 families in the Montbello area of Denver rely on Sacks of Love, the food bank run by the non-profit Struggle of Love.
"We are really boots on the ground. We are really into this, and this isn’t something that we just say we do. This is something that we are actually doing it," said Jovon Smith.
Earlier in the summer, the non-profit learned it did not receive grant funding.
The Montbello Organizing Committee applied for the Healthy Foods for Denver Kids grant through the city of Denver. The Committee had then planned to distribute the majority of the more than $1 million to Struggle of Love.
Without the funding, the Struggle of Love initially planned for the final day of the food bank to be July 31st. Instead, the non-profit has continued the effort relying on donations and paying out of pocket.
Each month, it costs the organization roughly $30,000 to ensure they can provide food for those in need.
"Just because the city might not have awarded us the grant that we got to keep at it," said Elon Hodge who works with the organization. "This is God’s work. That this is beyond us. A lot of people depend on us daily. So we know that this is bigger than us, and we have to work hard everyday to keep it going."
Right now, they believe the money could last for another month or two. After that, they are still looking for solutions to continue food distribution.
Besides food distribution, Struggle of Love is heavily involved in anti-violence efforts with youth in the Aurora and Denver areas. They also provide mental health resources and jobs for young people in the summer.
As part of their anti-violence efforts, Struggle of Love had used the funding to pay youth to run the food bank and keep them out of trouble. Without the money, it's all volunteer-based instead.
"It just motivates us everyday to find all the avenues that we can," said Hodge. "We are all optimistic. We know that it is going to keep going."
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