House of Hope Receives Impact100 Martin Grant for 2025
STUART, Fla. – House of Hope is the grateful recipient of a $100,000 impact grant from Impact100 Martin to help the nonprofit begin a new initiative in its efforts to provide nutritious food to the hungry.
House of Hope’s award-winning project will create a food preservation program, adding freeze dryers, food dehydrators and shrink-wrapping machines to House of Hope’s food processing capabilities.
Currently House of Hope grows fresh produce at its Growing Hope Farm in Palm City, receives bulk donations of food, and prepares healthy meals and sauces in its Elizabeth Lahti Nutrition Center in Stuart. By adding food preservation equipment, House of Hope will be able to take full advantage of bulk donations, reduce food waste, increase healthy food options for its clients and partners, and significantly increase the shelf-life of healthy food items.
“Our commitment to provide nutritious food has resulted in enormous dividends to the community, the clients we serve, and our food bank partners,” said Rob Ranieri, House of Hope CEO. “All food produced with this new equipment will be available at no cost to the almost 3,000 low income individuals who access our four client choice food pantries in Martin County, as well as the 11,000 individuals benefiting from our food through food bank partners in Martin County and another 5,000 served by food bank partners in St. Lucie and Okeechobee Counties.”
House of Hope has high expectations for the food preservation program. It means nutritious meals will be easier to store, have a longer shelf life, be easier for clients experiencing homelessness to manage, and offer exceptional emergency preparedness options for clients.
Always looking for ways to increase the revenue needed to support its mission, House of Hope sees new opportunities with this program.
“We’re truly grateful to the members of Impact100 Martin for seeing the potential this project has to impact our current services,” Ranieri said, “and what it can mean for the future. We’ll be able to package food to sell to the public, which will generate revenue to support our other programs. We’ll also be pursing agreements with local restaurants and markets to sell House of Hope sauces, herbs, pickled vegetables, dried fruits, vacuum sealed fresh produce and other products made with the equipment purchased with this grant award.”
As the equipment becomes operational, House of Hope will offer training classes for individuals to learn new processes for home use, again expanding the impact. People with low incomes will have an opportunity for free training classes that can help the participants make the most of the health and food storage capacity of their own kitchens.
“It’s an extraordinary achievement that Impact100 Martin is investing half a million dollars into our community this coming year,” Ranieri said. “We’re honored to be one of the recipients, along with Banner Lake, Friends of the Everglades, Project LIFT, and SafeSpace. Together with them and our other nonprofit partners, House of Hope benefits greatly from the generosity of our community as we work to improve the lives of the people we serve.”
To learn more about House of Hope or make a donation, visit House of Hope’s website at www.hohmartin.org or call 772-286-4673.
About House of Hope
Founded in 1984, House of Hope is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that empowers Martin County residents to overcome hunger and hardship. House of Hope touches the lives of more than 26,000 people each month, helping with basic needs such as food, clothing, furniture, and financial assistance, as well as longer-term case management services that help build life skills for a more self-sufficient future.
The organization has service centers in Stuart, Hobe Sound, Indiantown, and Jensen Beach, with thrift stores in Stuart, Hobe Sound, and Indiantown. House of Hope’s Centers for Enrichment at Golden Gate in Stuart, in Jensen Beach, and at KinDoo Family Center in Indiantown offer free programs, technology, and workshops designed to enhance life skills, earning potential, health, and overall well-being.
House of Hope also operates the Growing Hope Farm in Palm City and several nutrition gardens that provide sustainable sources of fresh produce for clients as well as nutrition education and vocational opportunities to the community. For more information, visit hohmartin.org or call 772-286-4673. Updates and announcements can also be found on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
