Salida Community Center was recently awarded $15,000 of grant funding by the Colorado COVID Relief Fund in order to help provide food to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Salida Community Center has been a part of the community for over 44 years. We have always served the community through various ways. Below is a list of some of our programs:

· CSFP (The Commodity Supplemental Food Program) which is a program for low income seniors.

· The TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program) This program is designed to help low income families.

· The News Blinkers Program which is designed to help students with the purchase of eyeglasses. Any student needing help should contact us.

· The Community Christmas Dinner where the community can gather and enjoy Christmas Dinner with others from the community.

· The American Flag Program where flags are placed at area businesses and residences showing our patriotism for 6 flag holidays throughout the year. The Flag Program is one of our fundraisers which allow us to provide some of our services. If anyone would like a flag placed please contact us.

· We also provide affordable room rentals for events and we provide affordable commercial kitchen rentals for local entrepreneurs.

The Salida Community Center is continuously committed to helping our community and has been monitoring the development of COVID-19 and we are taking proactive steps to help the people most vulnerable at this time. Since the COVID-19 pandemic we have seen a substantial amount of need in our community. Before the pandemic our normal number of people served was around 240 people and has now increased to over 700. We worked with Care and Share from Colorado Springs in order to obtain more food. Thanks to several board members and caring people in the community we are able to take trailers and pick up extra food to distribute. On the first Wednesday of each month we are provided with a semi-truck load of food which includes fruits, vegetables, meat, and canned goods to hand out to people in need. With the help of volunteers we are able to deliver to over 200 homes that include seniors and at risk individuals in the community and hand out food from the center to over 175 homes.

The Salida Community Center is pleased to receive this grant award and put it towards to continue our food distribution program for the people of Chaffee County and surrounding areas.

Anyone that would be interested in volunteering for any of these program can contact Elaine at the Salida Community Center at 719-539-3351.

Led by an executive committee in coordination with the Governor’s Office the Colorado COVID-19 Relief Fund was developed to raise and coordinate allocation of funds based on COVID-19 prevention, impact and recovery need of community-based organizations in Colorado. The Fund is organized to ensure that the most acute community needs across the state are being addressed and the community voice is reflected in all funding decisions made over time.

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Dan R

Danny “Dan R” Ridenour has been in radio and television broadcasting for over 40 years, starting as a senior in high school in Rogers, Arkansas. His radio career has had stops in Nashville, Memphis, Oklahoma, and eventually, Colorado. Dan enjoys being involved in the community, having been a member of the Upper Arkansas Service Club and is currently on the board of directors for the Salida Community Center and is a member of the Chaffee County Fair Committee. He and his wife Carrie spend their days doing everything the mountains have to offer: hiking, camping, fishing and skiing. They've raised 3 children and have 2 grandchildren.

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