If there are any people in the world that truly understand the importance of looking out for the next generation and helping children flourish, the people behind family-run businesses and initiatives understand. Losani Family Foundation, the charitable arm of Losani Homes, has raised thousands of dollars for local charities, many geared toward making sure children have food and resources available.
However, they don’t stop there.
The foundation provides much-needed support to organizations and people in need throughout the community, not just children.
Eliminating poverty and helping the community has been a long-time mission of the Losani Family Foundation. The organization and its team have participated in multiple community outreach initiatives targeted at supporting those less fortunate.
The Community
A part of their inspiration comes from the hardship they see in Hamilton. Some residents struggle in the Hamilton area, where statistics show that over 20% of Hamilton’s children live in poverty, according to recent data. Hamilton’s downtown core has been fortunate to have the De Mazenod Door at St. Patrick’s Church as a beacon of hope for those in want of human kindness and assistance. The church has been serving the community for years by providing healthy meals, fresh food, lodging, and medical support from talented local volunteers.
The Losani Family Foundation team is proud to have hosted a barbecue at the church in August this year in support of the church’s mission and to assist in providing for the adults and children in need of a warm and healthy meal.
The team served lunch including a host of food options such as sausages, chocolate, chips, bread, bagels, fresh vegetables from a local farm, orange juice, and even pet food for those in the community with cats or dogs.
In 2020, 6.4% of Canadians lived in poverty. Due to the pandemic, many areas stricken with poverty were greatly impacted by the virus and many people continue to struggle to bounce back.
The Children
Food availability for the Hamilton community is stark, the Losani Family Foundation team learned during a tour of Food4Kids. Executive Director Cathy Hahn and Board of Directors member John Madalena explained to the team that the 40-45 volunteers struggled to meet demand, as the pandemic continued to impact working families, resulting in home food shortages. Food4Kids works with area school boards to discover and assist at-risk families and students who need food packages and provide them with sustenance on a weekly basis.
Food insecurity can have lasting implications in children’s lives, including increased hospitalizations, poor overall health, iron deficiency, developmental risk, and behavioral problems, according to Pediatric Psychologist Dr. Maureen Black
The Losani Family Foundation contributed $2,500 to Food4Kids, with the goal of establishing a long relationship with the foundation and partnering to address the issue of food availability for Hamilton’s children.
On a similar note, the team also recently stopped by CityKidz, another non-profit near and dear to their hearts. Team members set to work packing family care kits and assembling boxes for meal kits. In addition to the volunteer labour, the foundation donated $10,000 as part of its commitment to helping CityKidz make a difference in the lives of children and their families as they fight hunger. As it stands now, Losani Family Foundation has donated more than $200,000 to CityKidz!
All of these organizations are active in supporting the many people in our local community most in need of our help. These charities and many others are supported by the Losani Family Foundation organization. The reason is simple and is at the very core of the Losani Family Foundation whose purpose is expressed beautifully by the family matriarch, Maria Losani, “It is truly our duty to help all people.”
