Our Heartfelt Mission

Marlene Chaney - Christian, wife, mother, teacher, confidant. There are so many words that could be used to describe Marlene and all would be positive. 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 countless hours 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. Later in life she made a point of providing meals to families during Covid as well as to anyone in her church who lost a loved one. Feeding people was her specialty, her passion. She did all of these things in a quiet, graceful manner being a calm guardian and a composed warrior. She would say that "Giving Back Is the Easy Part," and this was the pathway to and from her heart.

I have had the privilege of calling this lady, "Mom," and it is now 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. A kitchen is the core of our homes where we gather to pour out our hearts with the ones we love and solve problems big and small.

Marlene's Kitchen Foundation is a faith-based, non-profit foundation that supports people in our community during a time of need.​At present we have partnered with God’s Food Pantry in Somerset, KY as they are embarking on a multi-faceted venture to build a new facility. This new space will house a soup kitchen providing hot meals to people in need, there will be a restaurant that employs people coming out of rehabilitation, they will also provide a clothing store where donated items are sold at a much reduced rate and lastly, the facility will have a work force development unit that promotes a more productive community. This enterprise will support all of South central KY and is being used as a model to build more facilities like this in our region in the future. ​Curing hunger is the first line of defense against poverty.

Having the opportunity to partner with God’s Food Pantry from the very beginning of this endeavor is an honor and a privilege for Marlene’s Kitchen Foundation. We look forward to many other partnerships with a depth of ranges along our journey. ​

The spirit of Marlene's Kitchen Foundation is proud to help provide the essential elements for your lifelong fulfillment.