Service Agencies Partner to Donate to Local Service Groups in Jacksonville

By Benjamin Cox on September 30, 2022 at 3:50pm

Five local service clubs came together with 3 food charities in the Jacksonville community to address food insecurity in the Jacksonville area in recognition of Joint Service Club Week.

Representatives of the Rotary Club of Jacksonville, Sunrise Rotary Club, Jacksonville Kiwanis, Jacksonville Lions Club, and the Jacksonville Pilot Club presented a total of $4,200 in donations to the Jacksonville Area Food Center, the Salvation Army, and the Spirit of Faith Soup Kitchen to serve needy families in Jacksonville.

Lisa Kluge, president of the Rotary Club says she came together with Lori Hartz, Director of Community Health for Jacksonville Memorial Hospital to put the idea together quickly: “Rotary International sent me an email about Joint Service Week to get together with the other clubs in our community to raise funds for something for the good of the community to come together. I got with Lori Hartz and she came up with, instead of doing a food distribution drive, [the groups] giving actual money to the food center, the soup kitchen, and the Salvation Army so they could come up with the food that is actually needed in the area.”

Kluge says this is different than the Joint Service Club dinner held in November as a time to come together to be thankful. She says this week was another example of how well all of Jacksonville comes together to meet the community’s needs.