At our October 8, 2026 meeting, Chris Cassidy, Planning Director of New Bethany, thanked Morning Star Rotary for our $10,000 Community Grant and gave an update on the organization. Founded in 1985, New Bethany serves anyone without judgment through a renovated choice-model food pantry, a drop-in center, and a supportive housing program that now moves clients into permanent housing within 18 to 24 months rather than indefinitely; in 2025 it served over 40,000 hot meals to 1,100 neighbors, moved 45 families into permanent housing, and distributed 380,000 meals to 3,200 neighbors through its pantry. Chris described a worsening affordability picture in the Lehigh Valley, including a 41% rise in Bethlehem rents since the pandemic and a 156% increase in unsheltered homelessness, and said Morning Star's grant was well timed given a 40% jump in pantry visits tied to SNAP cuts and the loss of a USDA food-purchasing program that had brought in about $7,800 a month. She closed by previewing 2 upcoming events: the Bob Price Memorial Turkey Drive and Luminaria Night.
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