Walmart Grants $30,000 to CHIPS Soup Kitchen and Teen Mother Shelter

On September 23, went up in flames during a massive five-alarm fire and its next door neighbor, a local soup kitchen and a residence for teenage mothers and their babies, : shutting down the kitchen and the residence for months.

But on the Monday before Thanksgiving, Park Slope Christian Help (CHIPS) on Fourth Avenue, which feeds 200 people in need of a hot, nutritious meal everyday, after months of demolition and reconstruction.

On the Monday before Christmas, the charity's Frances Residence, which houses nine teenage mothers and their babies, opened its doors to the displaced women and children after living in hotels since September. 

The demolition and reconstruction cost the charity tens of thousands of dollars, but thanks to donations from churches, synagogues, local charities and neighbors, CHIPS, which has been running since 1972 between Sackett and Degraw, was able to rebuild and do what it does best: give food and shelter to those in need.

But one retailer’s donations came at a perfect time, on Dec. 21, right before the holidays. 

Walmart and the Walmart Foundation awarded CHIPS a $30,000 grant, which according to the local charity's president, Sister Mary Maloney, was used to buy linens, furniture, clothing and other personal items the mothers and babies lost during the fire.

Denise Scaravella, the new director of CHIPS as of Thanksgiving, was very happy they received the grant, which Maloney applied for before the fire, and said it helped them open the residence just in time for Christmas—their goal after the fire.

“We were very grateful and pleasantly surprised that we received the grant. It came at an appropriate time and we will put it to good use,” said Scaravella.

But the grant CHIPS received was only one of six other grants, totaling $250,000, Walmart gave out to New York City charities. They also gave money to the Alpha School, Committee for Hispanic Children and Families, God’s Love We Deliver and Harlem United Community AIDS Center.

Since 2007, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation have contributed close to $13 million to local charities across the five boroughs. 

“All across the country, we have a track record of giving back to the communities we serve and New York City is no different,” said Steven Restivo, senior director of community affairs for Walmart. “We obviously have relationships with customers, associates, suppliers here so we’re always looking for ways to support local programs that are making a difference.”

And this grant made a difference in Park Slope.

“We needed so many things to get back up and running and this grant has helped us already,” Scaravella said.