Walmart awards $4,000 grant to church's homeless program
The Walmart Neighborhood Market, 727 W. Golf Road, Des Plaines, has recently solicited and received a $4,000 community grant from Walmart on behalf of the St. Mark Lutheran Church PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter) program for the homeless.
St. Mark, 200 S. Wille St., in Mount Prospect, hosts the homeless every Monday night, October through April, providing between 60 and 70 people each week a warm place to sleep, eat dinner and breakfast, receive a sack lunch and take a warm shower.
They are assisted in their mission by St. Raymond de Penafort Catholic Church, Saint Paul Lutheran Church and St. Emily Catholic Church, all of Mount Prospect, as well as St. Philip Lutheran Church in Glenview and Allstate Insurance Company.
Many other volunteers around the community also offer their services.
"Walmart is committed to supporting local communities. We are very proud to support local organizations like St. Mark Lutheran Church and give back to communities where we operate," said Evaldas Bajoras, store manager. "In fact, Helen Walton used to say that it's not what you gather, but what you scatter that tells what kind of life you have lived."
St. Mark has been a PADS site for more than 27 years. In addition, through their Backpack Ministry, they feed local children each weekend who would otherwise go hungry and support local food pantries.
"We are so thrilled by Walmart's generosity, and look forward to serving our homeless guests well into the future as a result," said Dianne Quast, the volunteer who solicits charitable assistance for the program.
Walmart aims to strengthen communities through their stores, clubs and distribution centers, which provide access to affordable food and other products for daily needs; job and advancement opportunities; and by supporting local causes.
In 2018, Walmart gave more than $42 million in local grants in the U.S. For information on how Walmart gives back in communities around the world, visit www.walmart.org.
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