Aurora Cooperative is proud to announce the recipients of its 2025 Matching Grant Program. In collaboration with Land O’Lakes, this program aims to support local communities and initiatives. This year’s grants have been awarded to six exceptional projects in the categories of hunger relief and community vitality, aligning with our mission to create value for our owners, their communities, and the future of agriculture. Land O’Lakes matched our donation at $1,000 for each of the hunger relief projects and $5,000 for the community vitality project for a grand total of $20,000!

Hunger Relief

The grants for each of the following recipients help fund the cost of food, supplies, and upkeep of facilities utilized to run the backpack/food pantry programs:

• Hamilton County Backpack Program, Aurora, NE
• Hastings Public Schools Foundation, Hastings, NE
• Juniata Community Church Backpack Program, Juniata, NE
• Howard Greeley Co Food Pantry, St. Paul, NE

Crossroads Mission, Hastings, NE – This grant assists in the purchase of a new walk-in freezer which helps serve 19 food pantries across Nebraska.

Community Vitality

Central Community College, Hastings, NE – This grant provides funds to update and improve functionality in their 80-year-old automotive educational facilities.