Founded in 2007, The Butterfly Foundation is in the business of human development by providing life coaches to our participants to assist in the areas of education, job readiness and training, and adequate housing.
The Butterfly Foundation used HFFI financing to support the creation of a Healthy Food Hub, The Monarch and Fresh Food Store, located in a food desert on the North Side of Spartanburg, SC. The facility opened November 8, 2014, and includes a Café, Retail Store, Community Rooms, Incubator Kitchen, Urban Gardens and Farmers Market. Since the grant awarded by The Department of Health and Human Services, The Butterfly Foundation and Partners have raised and leveraged an additional $973,000 for the construction of the site. In addition, The University of South Carolina received $1,496,228 in funding from the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health to conduct a survey and collect data on the benefits of locating a healthy food hub in a community with limited food access. The Butterfly Foundation’s partners include the City of Spartanburg, Northside Development Corporation, Hub City Farmers Market, Duke Energy Foundation, Smith Foundation, SC Association of Community Development Corps., University of South Carolina, and Women Giving of Spartanburg. The facility approximately 4000 square ft., and the site covers approximately one acre of land. HFFI funds were used for the completion of construction of the facility and development of the entire site.
Projected Impacts
- Job training in the food service industry for unemployed, underemployed, previously incarcerated and homeless adults
- Create Healthy Food Hub in Spartanburg food desert including a Café, Retail Store, Community Rooms, Incubator Kitchen, Urban Gardens and Farmers Market
- 23 full-time jobs created
Source of money: HFFI CED Program; Fiscal year(s): 2011