St. Leo's Soup Kitchen Grant

Posted: Aug 30 2022

The Minot Area Community Foundation has granted $42,962 from the Arnold I. Besserud Fund to the St. Leo’s Catholic Church Soup Kitchen. The grant will pay for the purchase of a new walk-in cooler and freezer to replace the existing ones.

he soup kitchen at St. Leo’s serves a community meal every Thursday evening from 5:30pm to 6:30pm. The meals are served by the students and parents of Bishop Ryan Catholic School as well as other volunteer organizations of the church. The soup kitchen currently serves 100 meals per week and the number continues to grow.

“We at the St. Leo’s Soup Kitchen have been blessed to have such a generous organization in The Minot Area Community Foundation to donate a new walk-in cooler/freezer to allow us to continue to serve healthy meals to our friends and neighbors who attend our Thursday evening soup kitchen meals,” said Karen Feist of St. Leo’s Soup Kitchen.

The existing walk-in cooler and freezer units were outdated and unreliable and needed to be replaced. The cost to replace large appliances continues to increase and these items are necessary to serve the constituents of the soup kitchen. The Arnold I. Besserud Fund is a designated fund at the Minot Area Community Foundation that has a strong focus on soup kitchens, food pantries and humanitarian needs.

“We are very fortunate to have the Besserud Fund available to support the incredible work our local food pantries and soup kitchens provide to those in need. This grant epitomizes the intent of Mr. Besserud’s endowment are we are proud to do that in his memory,” said Jason Zimmerman, President of the Minot Area Community Foundation.