Angela Hunter, TTW web staff
Peter and Jackie Holsten of Holsten Human Capital Development (HHCD) and Holsten Management Company hosted a grand reopening for the Healthy Eating and Lifestyle (H.E.A.L.) Pantry and Organic Garden in its new location in the Community Center located at 316 North Spring Street on the property of River Walk Homes Apartment Complex.
Elizabeth Protich, Holsten Human Capital Development Senior Program Manager at the River Walk site said that The H.E.A.L. Food Pantry is open to everyone in Joliet and Will County. “Our emphasis is not only providing healthy food to people who need it, but also providing holistic health care services while promoting healthy eating,” Protich continued. The H.E.A.L. Pantry and Organic Garden has been in operation since 2018 with the goal of providing wrap around services for clients utilizing the pantry with an emphasis on healthy and fresh foods, providing access to health screenings and other supportive services that encourage self-sufficiency and healthy lifestyles.
Joliet Mayor Bob O’Dekirk, instrumental in securing funds for the River Walk H.E.A.L. project through Block Grant funds was on hand for the ribbon cutting. “I am thrilled to see the results of City of Joliet’s Community Development Block Grant investment of $309,596.00 at River Walk Community H.E.A.L. Pantry’s grand opening. As a CDBG entitlement community, it is our job to ensure that the City of Joliet’s CDBG investment creates a positive impact on our resident’s lives and River Walk’s H.E.A.L. Pantry is doing that,” Mayor O’Dekirk said. The H.E.A.L. Pantry and Organic Garden is the creation of the growing partnerships between Will County Land Use, the City of Joliet, and HHCD, and other partnering organizations working collectively to address the food insecurity and food dessert that exist within Will County.
The Will County “We Will Grow Program” is instrumental in providing supportive services, funding, starter plants, and seeds for the organic garden. The garden provides fresh seasonal produce weekly from June-October to the pantry. Funding from Will County Center for Community Concerns allows HHCD to partner with Northern Illinois Food Bank and its network of Direct Connect stores to keep the pantry fully stocked each week with a wide variety of fresh produce and goods. The newly renovated space in the Community Center provides a retail space, storage, and future commercial kitchen to assist in the continued expansion of services.
HHCD is grateful to everyone who has traveled with us on this journey from a simple idea that addressing food insecurity with healthy foods and supportive health services is possible, to what we celebrated today, continues to provide hope and open doors to new opportunities Executive Director Jackie Taylor-Holsten said “This is only the beginning. We want to show our commitment to Joliet and the people of Will County. We want people to know that there are great things to come,” Taylor-Holsten said.
Holsten Human Capital Development (HHCD) is a leader in supportive services throughout Chicagoland in partnership with Holsten Management Company. HHCD offers a wide range of services with a mission to, “strengthen at-risk populations by expanding their access to viable resources that promote self-sufficiency, wellness, and stability through comprehensive service provision, developing low-income and affordable housing, and fostering economic development. We are a convenient, on-site resource for those living in HHCD communities of agencies providing social and human services.”
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