Serve & Connect’s Greg’s Groceries packed dry food, donated by Walmart, to feed those in need in Kershaw County.
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Serve & Connect’s Greg’s Groceries initiative featured in The Courier Times
Serve & Connect was featured in The Courier Times for their partnership with the Roxboro Police Department, and other first responder groups, to pack food for the Greg’s Groceries initiative.
Serve & Connect featured on WIS 10 for their work to reduce gun violence amongst teens
Serve & Connect’s Decker Collective and Midlands group Be Smart were asked to speak on their initiative to reduce gun violence in Columbia.
Serve & Connect hosts first-ever North Carolina packing event with Greg’s Groceries
On July 2, we hosted our very first Greg’s Groceries packing event in North Carolina! Working alongside the Roxboro Police Department, Caswell County Sheriff’s Office, Roxboro Fire Department, Person County Sheriff’s Office, Walmart, and the North Carolina Highway Patrol, we managed to pack 300 boxes of groceries to be given to our community members in need! Every single one of these boxes was hand-packed with love by these law enforcement officers and Roxboro’s Walmart team. We couldn’t be more grateful for their help with this monumental packing event, and for expanding Greg’s Groceries’ service to the entire Carolinas! Read below for an impact story from Roxboro Police Department Chief, David Hess.
“This event has created lasting positive change by supporting our Roxboro community during its most vulnerable times and embodying true service above self,” said Roxboro Police Department’s Chief of Police, David Hess. “We are deeply grateful to Walmart for their unwavering support and to the Serve & Connect team for trusting Roxboro as their first out-of-state partner.”
Learn more about Greg’s Groceries and consider donating here: https://www.serveandconnect.org/gregs-groceries
Reach out to Kim Dennis, our Director of Operations and Strategic Partnerships, to learn more: kim@serveandconnect.org.
Roxboro Walmart and Serve & Connect Event Marks North Carolina Debut
The community service event aims to bridge the gap between law enforcement and community members.
Roxboro, N.C. (July 3, 2024) – Walmart and Serve & Connect made their North Carolina debut by partnering for a Greg’s Groceries packing event at the Roxboro Walmart Supercenter
Yesterday morning (July 2). This event marks a significant milestone as it brings together local law enforcement, public safety agencies and community members to foster positive police-community interactions for the first time in North Carolina.
“The packed boxes from this event create opportunities for positive, non-enforcement interactions between police officers and community members while fostering an environment of trust and connection,” said Serve & Connect’s CEO and Founder Kassy Alia Ray. “Our partnership with Walmart has been instrumental in growing our impact as we expand out of South Carolina for the first time and we are grateful for their continued support in hosting the event and providing the food and boxes.”
More than 50 law enforcement officials and Walmart store associates, store managers, people leads and market team of Market #296 came together to pack 300 boxes of food for the Greg’s Groceries program. Walmart donated the non-perishable food items to fill the boxes for the event. Several North Carolina government and organization officials attended the event including representatives from North Carolina State Highway Patrol, Roxboro Police Department, Person County Sheriff’s Office, Caswell County Sheriff’s Office and Roxboro Fire Department.
“This event has created lasting positive change by supporting our Roxboro community during its most vulnerable times and embodying true service above self,” said Roxboro Police Department’s Chief of Police, David Hess. “We are deeply grateful to Walmart for their unwavering support and to the Serve & Connect team for trusting Roxboro as their first out-of-state partner.”
Since Serve & Connect and Walmart partnered on this project, the nonprofit has grown its packing day events to include numerous agencies involved and thousands of boxes packed annually. To date, 15,720 boxes of Greg’s Groceries have been packed which is the equivalent of 1,310,840 meals, including the 300 from yesterday’s event.
Greg’s Groceries, named in honor of fallen Forest Acres Police Officer Greg Alia, has seen significant growth, with delivery currently in 70% of South Carolina counties and actively working with 75 agencies, including three statewide agencies and two federal agencies. The program’s expansion to North Carolina is a testament to its success and commitment to fostering positive community relations.
The boxes packed at yesterday’s event will be distributed by the Roxboro Police Department and Person County Sheriff’s Office to local communities.
About Walmart in North Carolina
Walmart Inc. (NYSE: WMT) helps people around the world save money and live better – anytime and anywhere – in retail stores, online and through their mobile devices. In North Carolina we serve customers at 214 retail units and online through Walmart Online Grocery, Walmart.com and our family of brands. We are proud to employ more than 60,000 associates in North Carolina. Walmart supports local businesses, spending $9.2 billion with North Carolina suppliers in FYE 2024 and supporting more than 86,000 North Carolina supplier jobs. Walmart continues to be a leader in employment opportunity, sustainability, and corporate philanthropy. In FY23, Walmart and the Walmart Foundation contributed more than $64 million in cash and in-kind donations to local nonprofits in North Carolina. Additional information about Walmart can be found by visiting our corporate website and our Instagram, Facebook and Twitter channels.
Serve & Connect featured on Stand Together
Serve & Connect’s founder Kassy Alia was recently featured on standtogether.org
Board Member Spotlight
We are eager to present our new board members for the 2024-2025 session, and honor our board members/chairs who are transitioning out of Serve & Connect.
This past May, we celebrated two of our key board members who are transitioning out of Serve & Connect. Founding board members Ryan Alphin and Deputy Chief Melron Kelly of Serve & Connect served for nine and six years respectively–with Ryan having served as board chair for three years. To say that we are grateful to these men would be a gross understatement. While their time of serving as board members has come to an end, we carry our partnerships with them into the future. Our CEO Kassy Alia Ray and board chair, Kent Krieg, presented awards in recognition of their outstanding service to our organization.
Our board has a few new faces, along with some who are continuing their service as members of the board! Introducing Serve & Connect’s Board for the 2024-2025 session:
- Rev. Juan Ibarra: Pastor of Filadelfia Church of God and Manager of Sandlapper Cleaning Service.
- Kent Krieg – Past Chair: Section Manager of DHEC
- Angela McDuffie – Board Chair: Executive Director of Midlands Fatherhood Coalition
- Xanna Bailey: Director of Recruiting, Nephron Pharmaceuticals
- Amanda Taylor: Regional Director for AT&T External Affairs in the Upstate of South Carolina.
- Andrea Mock: News Anchor, WLTX
- Lance Brown – Treasurer of the Board: President & CEO of Rhino Medical Supply Inc.
- Rick Jiran – Chair-Elect: Vice President of Local Government & Infrastructure Engagement, Community Relations at Duke Energy
- Katie Titus – Board Member At Large: Director of Government and External Relations for Bon Secours St. Francis Health System in Greenville and Roper St. Francis Healthcare in Charleston.
- Michael Brenan: Retired
- Clifford Bourke: Vice President of Legal Services, Southeastern Freight Lines
- Ron Harvey, MBA: Vice President/ COO of Global Core Strategies & Consulting LLC.
Congratulations to our board members: both new and returning!
Serve & Connect Honored by FBI with National Award
Serve & Connect awarded the FBI Director’s Community Leadership Award for their community and service work across South Carolina.
Serve & Connect, a nonprofit organization founded in 2015, has made its mark on the Midlands and beyond with the work that they do to form and nurture community partnerships. The work that they do is so impactful for the communities and citizens that they partner with that it has gained national attention and recognition. On Friday, April 19, 2024, Serve & Connect was honored with the prestigious Director’s Community Leadership Award in recognition of their efforts to build bridges between law enforcement agencies and the communities that they serve.
The Director’s Community Leadership Award ceremony was hosted by FBI Director Christopher Wray, who also had the distinct privilege of handing out the awards to each recipient. Kassy Alia Ray, Founder and CEO of Serve & Connect, accepted the award on behalf of the organization in the ceremony at FBI Headquarters.
The Director’s Community Leadership Award (DCLA) was created in 1990 by the FBI as a way to acknowledge dedicated individuals and organizations from around the United States who strengthen their communities and reduce crime and violence through their extraordinary work. These individuals and are known for putting others first, for breaking through barriers to form new partnerships, and for being community leaders. The FBI has 56 field offices and each year, one recipient from each field office is honored with the DCLA. Serve & Connect is the 2023 award recipient for South Carolina’s FBI field office.
You can learn more about the Director’s Community Leadership Award program at https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/outreach/dcla
Serve & Connect celebrates its second year as one of Stand Together Foundation’s Catalyst Impact Partners.
Serve & Connect is pleased to continue working alongside the Stand Together Foundation for as one of their Catalyst Impact Partners for two years running. Stand Together Foundation’s Catalyst Impact Grant Program is an initiative cultivating a group of the country’s most transformative nonprofits that demonstrate a better way to transform individual lives and create lasting change. The Catalyst program is designed to provide resources for increased effectiveness, including management training and customer feedback tools to help nonprofits grow, scale, and replicate their success.
It is an honor for Serve & Connect to be a part of this transformative program with Stand Together Foundation. We look forward to continuing our blossoming relationship in 2024, and to serving the incredible service men, women, and community members throughout the Midlands area. Together, Serve & Connect and Stand Together Foundation can achieve even larger service goals, maintaining our shared values of dedicative service and support. Here’s to another great year as a Catalyst Impact Partner!
