Kennett Area Community Service (KACS) has been looking for a new home to continue to serve those in the community who need assistance in meeting their basic needs. KACS is a nonprofit organization based in Kennett Square Borough that operates a food cupboard and provides a variety of services to individuals and families in need. That search for a new, larger home has intensified in the last year as KACS has seen a significant increase in requests for assistance as families have navigated through the challenges of the pandemic.

Now, KACS has announced that Michael and Nancy Pia, who are well known for their charitable giving in the community, are making a donation that will help the organization build a new home.The Pias have generously offered to donate approximately 6 acres of land on Cypress Street, bordering Kennett and New Garden Townships, and to provide financial support to help establish a new home for KACS at this location.  

In a statement distributed by KACS, the organization thanked the Pias for the support, and noted that they have been “significant, long term supporters of KACS.”

The statement continued, “The KACS Board of Directors has unanimously voted to accept this very generous offer and extend sincere thanks to the Pias for providing this significant gift.  KACS looks forward to working with the Pias now and in the future to fulfill the mission of KACS and support southern Chester County.”

The Pia family is entrenched in the southern Chester County community. Michael has worked his entire career in the family’s mushroom farming business, South Mill Champs, which has grown to be the third largest mushroom producer in North America. Nancy is an educator, having taught in both local and inner-city schools. She is also an artist and published writer. In 2002, the Pias established the Michael and Nancy Pia Foundation in order to formalize their charitable giving. The Foundation is dedicated to improving the lives of children, and supports organizations and programs focused in those areas. In 2018, the Pias established the Michael & Nancy Pia Foundation Fund through the Chester County Community Foundation to expand the reach of their charitable giving. The Fund is focused on specific areas relating to children and families: homelessness, poverty, and hunger; health, specifically mental well-being; and education.

KACS, home of the Kennett Food Cupboard works to end poverty, strengthening the community in Southern Chester County through food, housing, and crisis services.  Located in Kennett Square, KACS services the Kennett Consolidated, Avon Grove and Unionville Chadds-Ford school districts.