The Endowment for a Hunger-Free Future

Endowment: Ensuring Resources Are Available to Meet the Need

Second Harvest Heartland stands ready to feed the growing line of people experiencing hunger and to create the long-term change needed to end hunger. Organizations like ours as well as the broader hunger-relief network must be positioned to tackle the biggest and most urgent needs within our communities. As such, we’ve created an endowment fund to ensure that resources are available to meet those needs in perpetuity.

Why Does Second Harvest Need an Endowment?

To meet the increased need for years to come:

An appropriately funded endowment will help us ensure we are able to meet the increased demand for food assistance through whatever crises may arise.

To distribute food fairly, closing the racial hunger divide:

An endowment provides Second Harvest Heartland the flexibility to direct funds to our strategic priorities. These funds will allow us to innovate and distribute food fairly to tackle the reality that families of color and Indigenous communities are at least twice as likely to experience hunger.

To strengthen the network for the next generation:

Our endowment strengthens the hunger-relief network, so that the critical, frontline team of local food shelves have the resources and food to keep up with their community need.

To prepare for new challenges—skyrocketing food prices, unemployment jumps, the next pandemic:

An endowment prepares Second Harvest Heartland to be there for our neighbors through tomorrow’s crises, ensuring that whatever challenges come our way, food will be available to help us power through.

How Do Endowments Work?

An endowment is a special-purpose investment fund, utilized by nonprofit organizations, including many food banks. It allows Second Harvest Heartland to save and direct funds to strategic priorities. One important goal of an endowment is to ensure funds are available in perpetuity, which means annual spending from our endowment will typically be limited to investment earnings.

Questions about Second Harvest Heartland’s endowment can be directed to development@2harvest.org.