Candace Sloan has a joyful, infectious laugh—but her cheerful attitude belies the tough year she has endured.

The mother of three, Candace lost her job as a financial analyst in January 2010. Her husband has not received a salary since 2008. And as their oldest son enters college, their household expenses are on the rise. After years of volunteering at St. Columbanus Food Pantry in Park Manor, their South Side neighborhood, the Sloans are now receiving food themselves.

"If it weren't for St. Columbanus and the food pantry," she says, "I don't know how we would feed our family."

Feeding Illinois, a coalition of food banks that supplies 2,000 locations like St. Columbanus, received $250,000 from the Trust's Unity Challenge. That grant has translated to 20% more food available for the Sloans and 500 families just like them.

Then, with the grant from the Unity Challenge, Feeding Illinois leveraged a 4-to-1 match from the federal Temporary Aid to Needy Families program. Thanks to these and other private sources, Feeding Illinois delivered 5.8 million pounds of nutritious, kid-friendly foods statewide.

"Food banks see a lot more families," says Tracy Smith, state director of Feeding Illinois. "So they've been thrilled to get this food at a time when it's really critical for families and children."

Candace Sloan is grateful to St. Columbanus for helping her family hold on through tough times. She still volunteers at the pantry to show her support for others in need.

"We always thought the people that we were helping were poor and destitute, but it's just regular, everyday people coming into an unfortunate situation. And they need help."

Learn more about the Unity Challenge