The Verizon Center was buzzing with activity as nearly 600 volunteers gathered to pack 12,500 bags of food for the Capital Area Food Bank’s Weekend Bag Program on June 17.
The event was a landmark achievement in the partnership between Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and the Capital Area Food Bank. The packing event was the first joint service project between the three organizations, and the massive volunteer turnout came at a critical time for CAFB and its community partners.
Nationwide, one in five children are hungry. In Washington D.C., the numbers increase to one in three.
These sobering statistics are even more critical in the summer. “We try to feed 2,000 children a week. Families spend an extra $300 over the summer because there is no school meal plan for their children, and it is very critical to have access to nutritious meals,” said Lavette Sims, the Capital Area Food Bank’s head of development for Prince George’s County.
The summer months also come with a decrease in volunteers, making it more difficult for CAFB to get food to those who need it. In just one day, the volunteers sorted and packed enough nutritious, healthy food to distribute across CAFB’s 45 sites for two months.
“I think it is remarkable and amazing to see we can make an impact with hunger and youth,” said Harrison Boyd, senior associate and team leader at PwC. “The idea of children going without food is unfortunate and the fact that we can help eliminate that goes a long way.”
CAFB’s collaboration with PwC and MSE emphasizes the commitment of the two company’s double bottom line philosophy to strive to do well as a business while also finding ways to serve a larger purpose by contributing to society and benefitting the local community.
And of course, as all the organizations are proud supporters of the Capitals, Mystics, and Wizards, some of the Verizon Center’s mascots were on hand to cheer on the volunteers.
The Weekend Bags program is just one of the programs the Capital Area Food Bank provides to help fill the gaps in the hunger safety net in the region. For more information on this, and other food bank initiatives, please visit our programs page.
