Trustees of the Riedel Foundation awarded a $4,000 matching grant to help the Hannibal Kiwanis Club provide coats and shoes to needy children at Hannibal schools. The items are purchased locally at a discount from JC Penney and distributed to children whom the school has identified as in need.
Because the award is a matching grant, the Kiwanis Club is responsible for raising another $4,000 to earn the full amount. The club has already exceeded the requirement, holding several fundraisers over the past few months to put toward towards the program.
Paul Buckman has served as the Chairperson of Citizenship Services for the Hannibal Kiwanis Club for more than 30 years. “Our prior experience with the program has shown how important and needed it is for the students to have new coats or shoes,” Buckman said. “Other organizations help with hats and gloves, but no other organization provides new coats and shoes.”
The Riedel Foundation has helped fund this effort several times in recent years. This year’s goal is to help 165 children in the elementary grades.
“I’d say that the majority of the approximately $325,000 in grants that will give annually benefit children,” Riedel Trustee Michael Gaines said. “We can only be successful if local groups like the Kiwanis step up to lead programs like this.”
Since the George H. Riedel Trust was established in 2000, it has awarded approximately six million dollars in grants that benefit Hannibal residents.