The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending more than $1.6 million to the State of Vermont to reimburse the costs of providing emergency meals for residents in need during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The $1,613,025 Public Assistance grant will go to the Agency of Commerce and Community Development for providing meal preparation and delivery service to high-risk populations under the state’s emergency feeding program, “Vermont Everyone Eats”, between October and November 2021.
During that time the agency entered into an agreement with Southeastern Vermont Community Action, Inc. (SEVCA), which established and coordinated with state-wide subcontractors (Hubs) that worked with restaurants to produce and distribute 129,042 meals and feed 81,195 people.
The program launched in August 2020 with $5 million from the state’s Coronavirus Relief Fund and has continued with additional funding through FEMA.
“We are very pleased to be able to assist Vermont with this innovative program to alleviate food insecurity during this pandemic,” said FEMA Region I Acting Regional Administrator Paul Ford. “Not only are Vermonters in need helped but restaurants in the private sector benefit as well.”
FEMA’s Public Assistance program is an essential source of funding for states and communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency. So far, FEMA has provided more than $301 million in grants to Vermont to reimburse the state for pandemic-related expenses.
Additional information about FEMA’s Public Assistance program is available at https://www.fema.gov/public-assistance-local-state-tribal-and-non-profit. To learn more about the COVID-19 response in Vermont, please visit https://www.fema.gov/disaster/4532.