Beth Froehlich

bfroehlich@nhfoodbank.org

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

The New Hampshire Food Bank announced today that they received a $50,000 donation from the Bank of America Charitable Foundation that allowed the Food Bank to purchase 77,828 pounds of essential holiday meal items. This will provide 60,803 meals for hungry individuals in New Hampshire this Thanksgiving holiday.

The generous gift enabled the Food Bank to purchase pallets of stuffing, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, green beans and peas - all the fixings for a delicious Thanksgiving meal. This is to compliment the ‘Tons of Turkeys’ food drive supported by Bank of America, on Saturday November 21st, where the Food Bank is set to receive TONS of turkeys at seven Hannaford locations throughout southern New Hampshire. In 2008 the Food Bank received 49, 494 pounds of turkeys (nearly 25 tons). In addition, Bank of America is accepting donations of canned vegetables from the community at all of its banking center locations, Merrill Lynch and Home Loan offices throughout the state.

When the product was delivered to the Food Bank, everyone got to see first hand just how much food $50,000 was able to purchase. It was truly amazing to see over 82,000 individual cans and boxes being put out on the shelves. Everyone involved was incredibly enthusiastic, knowing how many people this food was going to serve. When the product was put out on the shopping floor, the agencies were lined up outside the building to be able to take advantage of this highly anticipated and critically needed holiday food.

“Bank of America is truly committed to helping us fight hunger in New Hampshire. They have been a great supporter of the Food Bank and our mission. This incredible donation allowed us to purchase a tremendous amount of high quality food that will allow thousands of families in our state to enjoy a nice holiday meal” said Melanie Gosselin, Executive Director of the New Hampshire Food Bank.

Demand is up substantially this year, especially going into the holiday season. The Food Bank has already distributed 4.6 million pounds of food to date and is on target to distribute an additional 2 million pounds of food by the end of the year. Agencies of the New Hampshire Food Bank are reporting an increased demand of anywhere from 25-50%. This major contribution from Bank of America will help the Food Bank feed the growing number of hungry individuals in our state.

“Bank of America is pleased to continue our support of the New Hampshire Food Bank and Tons of Turkeys campaign,” said John F. Weeks, president, Bank of America New Hampshire. “It is imperative, in light of the economic challenges all families are facing, to support organizations with proven track records of helping those in need. The New Hampshire Food Bank is making a real difference in the community, and we are proud to call them partners.”

About New Hampshire Food Bank

A program of New Hampshire Catholic Charities, the New Hampshire Food Bank serves as the only Food Bank in the state. Its current approach to ending hunger includes developing programs to help educate our registered agencies, rolling out a Mobile Food Pantry, and expanding the Operation Frontline and Recipe for Success programs. For more information, visit www.nhfoodbank.org