Lutheran Services Carolinas (LSC) has received a $148,500 grant through the North Carolina Healthcare Foundation’s COVID-19 Fill The Gap Response Fund to support its Feeding LSC Heroes Project. The grant will provide support for essential frontline workers in LSC skilled nursing and independent living communities. Grant funding will provide food for the workers and their families during the COVID-19 crisis.

“The Fill the Gap Response Fund was formed to support North Carolina’s people and places disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. The pandemic exacerbated health and economic challenges already present in rural communities and vulnerable populations around the state,” Julia Wacker, senior vice president of the North Carolina Healthcare Foundation, said. “They are often hit harder and take longer to recover.”

LSC was awarded one of 19 grants that averaged $87,635. Lead funders of the initiative include the David A. Tepper Foundation, Kate B. Reynolds Charitable Trust, State Employees’ Credit Union Foundation and the Duke Endowment.

LSC frontline workers include nursing, housekeeping, dietary and maintenance staff at 11 LSC skilled nursing and independent living communities. To support these workers, the nonprofit created the Feeding LSC Heroes Project to provide free meals for each shift. To date, LSC has provided over 8,000 free meals.

LSC also provides a simple weekly meal and other household essentials for these staff members to take home to share with their families. To date, 1,197 employees have received take-home items.

“We are extremely grateful to the North Carolina Healthcare Foundation for providing more support to our essential frontline teammates. They leave their own families every day to serve our most vulnerable populations, so giving them some peace of mind by providing meals is the least we can do,” LSC President and CEO Ted Goins said. “In this time of uncertainty, one thing still rings true; our teammates are heroes.”

Two from Food Lion among 2020 ‘Top Women in Grocery’

SALISBURY — Two Food Lion leaders were named to Progressive Grocer magazine’s 2020 Top Women in Grocery list.

The award recognizes grocery retail leaders in various categories. The Food Lion leaders being recognized are Natasha Brinegar, vice president of category management – center store and Susan Lansley, manager of merchandising.

Brinegar was honored in the “Senior-Level Executives” category. She is responsible for leading five category teams, which include pet/baby, general merchandise/multimedia, Hispanic specialty, general merchandise everyday, international specialty, glass/can, prepared foods/shelf stable, paper, condiments, baking products and laundry/cleaning supplies. Brinegar manages a team of more than 35 associates and has led her team to achieve sustained growth among the categories she oversees to help drive Food Lion’s 29 consecutive quarters of same store sales growth. She is  a member of the Food Lion Feeds Charitable Foundation board of directors and a member of Food Lion’s Diversity Council.

Lansley was honored in the “Rising Stars” category. She is responsible for the development and communication of the deli, bakery and prepared foods merchandising plans and leads communicating and implementing new programs for Food Lion’s more than 1,000 stores. She is involved in the design of each store’s deli department and over the last year planned and implemented new deli designs in more than 120 stores.

Food Lion is part of Ahold Delhaize USA.

Cress appointed interim Emergency Services chief as Soliz leaves

Rowan County has appointed Allen Cress as interim Emergency Services chief following the departure of Chris Soliz.

A 26-year employee of Rowan County, Cress has spent the past five years as Rowan County’s 911 chief. He first started work in public service in 1982 when he joined the Rockwell Rural Fire Department as a volunteer while a student at East Rowan High School. He served 20 years as chief of the Fire Department and still serves as a firefighter and Advanced  EMT. He holds N.C. instructor certifications in fire and EMS and international 911 instruction. He also holds a certification in County Administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Cress is vice president of the state chapter of the National Emergency Number Association, an organization that advocates for the 911 industry.

The news release noted the county wishes Soliz the best of luck in his future employment endeavors.