COVID-19 has negatively impacted our community in countless ways.  In addition to the stress on our health care system and our economy, the COVID-19 pandemic is creating an urgent food security challenge for households and communities across the country and in Dane County.  With school closures, job disruptions, and health risks, thousands of people in our community have turned to food banks for much-needed support. 

As many Dane County residents stock up on weeks of provisions, food pantries, food banks and soup kitchens are figuring out how to get hungry people in our community the food they need quickly and safely.  Even before the pandemic, one in eleven households in Wisconsin were food insecure, meaning they didn’t have assured access to the food they needed due to limited resources.

TEMPO Madison was founded to bring women of influence together to make a collective difference.  With this mission in mind, we want to do our part to make sure our most vulnerable community members continue to have reliable access to food. During the months of May and June 2020, we will be raising money through the TEMPO Madison Foundation to donate to The River Food Pantry COVID-19 Emergency Food Fund. 100% of funds raised will be given to River Food Pantry. 

The River Pantry will use the funds we raise to provide:

• Boxes of groceries, including perishable and non-perishable food, for hundreds of local households to pick up curbside at The River or for delivery to low income adults residing in Madison and Monona.
• Pre-bagged lunches for children delivered through MUNCH—The River’s mobile lunch program—to 9 low-income neighborhoods 6 days a week.

Please join me by making a donation to the TEMPO Madison Foundation on TEMPO Madison’s website during the months of May and June 2020, to raise funds for this campaign.  

Donations can be made on our website or by Mail to FOOD PANTRY DONATION C/O TEMPO MADISON FOUNDATION 16 N. Carroll St. Suite 800, Madison, WI 53703. 

To kick off this fundraising campaign, I have made a $1000 donation. I hope you will make a meaningful donation so we can make a difference for those in our community who need our help during this challenging time. 

No one should go hungry, especially during the COVID-19 public health emergency.  Let’s do our part to help those in our community gain necessary access to food. 

Thank you, 
Shana Lewis, TEMPO Madison President