Mt. Sterling, IL: Dot Foods wanted to make an impact in honor of its 50th anniversary, so the food redistributor sent a commemorative golden trailer to deliver 270,000 pounds of food – equivalent to $315,000 – to 11 FeedingAmerica.org food banks across the country from May through October.
The donated food included peanut butter, tuna, a variety of beans and rice, canned fruits and vegetables, cereal and oatmeal. Each truckload was delivered to a Feeding America regional food bank. From there, the food was distributed to local agencies near Dot locations. The food banks that received the donations, in order of delivery, include: Central Illinois Foodbank in Springfield, Ill., River Bend Food Bank in Moline, Ill., Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana in Indianapolis, America's Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia Inc. in Savannah, Ga., Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma in Oklahoma City, Maryland Food Bank in Baltimore, Food Bank of Central New York in E.Syracuse, N.Y., The Idaho Foodbank in Boise, Idaho, Second Harvest Food Bank of San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties in Manteca, Calif., Northern Illinois Food Bank in St. Charles, Ill., and St. Louis Area Foodbank in St. Louis.
“As the donation tour comes to an end, we are humbled as a company to have helped those in need, but we realize that the need is much greater than we can provide,” said Pat Tracy, chairman. “There is no better way to celebrate a successful 50 years than by paying it forward. We know we are blessed to have such success and do not take it for granted.”
In California, the Second Harvest Food Bank of San Joaquin and Stanislaus Counties marked the eighth stop for the golden trailer. In Maryland, 20 employees from Dot’s Williamsport DC helped unload boxes at the five food banks that received the donation.
After the donations were delivered to the food banks near each of Dot’s distribution centers, employees were given the opportunity to volunteer at the local agencies that received the donated food. In Burley, Idaho, for example, DC employees helped unload boxes of the donated food at the Minidoka County Senior Center and Golden Heritage Senior Citizen.
The food banks executives’ gratitude was overwhelming.
“With the $35,000 food donation, the Food Bank of Central New York was able to supply approximately 19,000 meals to emergency food programs within our 11 county service area. We are so pleased to have been part of the Dot Foods 50th Anniversary celebration,” said Kathleen Stress, director of internal operations, Food Bank of Central New York.
“Hunger in rural America continues to be a problem for thousands of individuals and families in our service area. The incredible support from Dot Foods made a major difference in the lives of those people who deal with food insecurity on a daily basis. Seven food pantries from Hancock and McDonough Counties were able to better serve their hungry clients due to the generosity of Dot Foods,” said Tom Laughlin, executive director of River Bend Foodbank.
“We are extremely thankful for our partnership with Dot Foods. Thanks to the organization’s donation of 20,600 pounds of food, we were able to provide nearly 15,850 meals to hungry Oklahomans,” said Rodney Bivens, Executive Director, Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma.
“Dot Foods’ donation comes at a good time for Gleaners and the other 10 food banks. Because of the worst economy since the Great Depression, the number of hungry people in Indiana is up significantly. In fact, over the last ten years or so, the number of Hoosiers who are struggling with hunger is up nearly 50%. Last year, in 21 central and southeastern Indiana counties, a network of over 400 charitable programs that depend on food from Gleaners, provided emergency food assistance to 160,900 different people; over half of these were children and seniors,” said Pamela Altmeyer, president & CEO, Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana.
Along with this donation tour, Dot is marking its 50th anniversary with a focus on thanking its employees and their families for 50 successful years. Back in May, each of the eight distribution centers held a Family Appreciation Day, and in September, employees were recognized at an Employee Recognition Day.
