The Downingtown Area Senior Center originated in 1974 as a Meals Together Program. At it's birth, Meals Together had only four seniors who met weekly in the original Downingtown United Methodist Church on Brandywine Avenue for a noon meal and light social time. As the popularity of the program grew the need for a Senior Center was realized. Thus the Downingtown Senior Center was formed. Moving with the Church to their current location on Lancaster Avenue, the Church was home to the Senior Center for over twenty years. During this time the Senior Center continued to gain popularity and our attendance soared. The word "Area" was officially added to our name indicating our services were available to a much larger population than simply those who reside in the Borough of Downingtown. In April 2002 the Center was awarded a $200,000.00 grant from the Chester County Department of Community & Economic Development allowing us to make a down payment on our current 5,000 square foot facility in Ashbridge Commons. We opened the doors to our new facility in October of 2002. The Senior Center now provides service to more than 1,500 individuals per year.
The Lord's Pantry of Downingtown (LPD) began in the mid 1960's as a small service effort to help some needy persons within the St. James Episcopal church family. The concept grew to include people of the broader Downingtown community. The growth was such that by the 1980's, the Downingtown Ministerium association adopted the LPD as a project deserving of its support and direction.
During the St. James and Ministerium eras, the storage and distribution of donated food and supplies were housed in the St. James Church. Throughout all those years, the LPD paid neither rent nor utility costs. There has never been any paid staff associated with the LPD. By June 2001, the demand for the LPD services grew to the extent that the LPD governance structure and operations had to be evaluated.The LPD was formalized by incorporation as a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization on July 3, 2001 and remains as one today.
In January 2002, the LPD relocated to a new location in Downingtown, a site that was larger and convenient to its clients. With the relocation, the LPD for the first time, incurred rent, utility costs, insurance coverage and other expenses associated with property occupancy. At the time of the move, we also expanded our service area to include Downingtown, Exton, and Lionville.
After several years of operating in 1,000 sq. ft. of space at 141 E. Lancaster Ave., it was apparent to the Board of Directors that the pantry needed addtional space. In addition, the building was for sale and we were faced with the possibility of eviction if the building sold. On June 1, 2006 the LPD submitted a grant to the Chester County Department of Community Development for funds to acquire a building. On October 16, 2006 we were notified that the LPD was awarded $250,000 for this purpose! The Chester County Commissioners presented the check to the LPD on March 1 and that afternoon, the sale papers were signed to purchase the building at 141 E. Lancaster Ave.
The LPD no longer has a lease payment, but with the responsibilities of owning a building, we have incurred additional utility, insurance, and maintenance costs. We appreciate the support of the community and look forward to serving the emergency food needs of the residents of Downingtown for many years to come.
The Lord's Pantry of Downingtown has been in operation for over 40 years and is a non-profit, 501 (c)(3). Since it's inception, the Lords's Pantry has been, and remains 100% volunteer. We currently serve 672 registered families a four to five day supply of food which includes non-perishables, meat selections, fresh vegetables and dairy products when available. We also recognize that our families need paper products, and therefore, we encourage donations of these items in order for us to supply them to the families.
All of our families qualify for the food they receive based on their income of 150% of poverty. The local churches support the pantry and are very important to us, but we recognize that hunger and poverty are community issues as well. We believe that our supporters are critical to sustain, and more importantly, expand the effort before us.
We encourage you to call us or stop by for a visit. Good and cost efficient work is being done in Downingtown! We welcome your support, ideas and assistance.
Since 1948 our philosophy has been that visually impaired people can live normal lives regardless of the degree of sight limitation. Therefore, the objective of the agency and its staff is to promote the adjustment, self reliance, independence, and dignity of every visually impaired person in Chester County.
We are a nonprofit association, with members of the Board of Directors serving without pay. We are audited by Public Accountants.
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Handicapped Employment for legally blind and totally blind people. We produce: |
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Prevention/Counselor |
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