ABOUT MARLENE'S KITCHEN FOUNDATION
"Giving Back Is the Easy Part." - Marlene Chaney
THE LEGACY BEHIND THE NAME
Marlene Chaney – Christian, wife, mother, teacher, confidant. There are so many words that could be used to describe Marlene, and all would be positive and virtuous. Faithful, compassionate, loving, and with a heart of pure gold, Marlene lived her life in service to those she loved as well as those she had never met. As a Christian, she had a charitable spirit that was a natural part of her soul, and she felt that everyone deserved to have their basic needs met. As a mother and a first-grade teacher, she had a special place in her heart for children and went out of her way to make sure they had the essential elements in life to succeed. During her time as a teacher, she spent 32 years in the classroom educating, as well as countless hours outside of the classroom making home visits to see that her students were in a stable environment with the essentials needed to grow into productive members of their community. In addition to that, Marlene served on the Board of Directors of her local God’s Food Pantry for many years.
During this time she developed an even deeper passion for helping those who were food insecure, and she worked with the community at length to help those affected by poverty. In 2020, during the beginning of Covid, she began making additional contributions to ensure impoverished families had food on their tables during an especially difficult time. She continued this throughout her life, as well as helping to coordinate church-wide dinners for the whole congregation. Feeding people was her specialty, her passion. She did all these things in a quiet, graceful manner without any need for attention or recognition. She would say that “Giving Back Is the Easy Part,” and this was the pathway to and from her heart.
A MESSAGE FROM THE FOUNDER: CARRYING THE LEGACY FORWARD
"I had the privilege of calling Marlene 'Mom,' and it is my absolute honor to share with you a part of her legacy: Marlene’s Kitchen Foundation.
This foundation will make a commitment to provide essential elements for people in need. A kitchen is not just a place where we cook our meals. It is the core of our homes where we gather to pour out our hearts with the ones we love, solving problems big and small.
Marlene’s Kitchen Foundation is a faith-based, non-profit foundation that supports people in our community during their time of need."
OUR WORK IN THE COMMUNITY
At present we have partnered with God’s Food Pantry in Somerset, KY as they are embarking on a multi-faceted venture to move to a new facility. This new space will not only be a food pantry, but it will house a soup kitchen providing free hot meals to people in need; there will be a separate restaurant to serve the general public which will employ people coming out of rehabilitation; the facility will also provide a store for partnered non-profit affiliates where they can procure resources such as clothing, shoes, toys, hygiene items and more; and lastly, the facility will have a workforce development unit that promotes a more productive community for the long term.
This enterprise will serve all of South-Central Kentucky and will be used as a model for other facilities in our region in the future. Eliminating hunger is the first line of defense against poverty.
OUR SPIRIT AND COMMITMENT
The spirit of Marlene’s Kitchen Foundation is proud to help provide the essential elements for your lifelong fulfillment.
