COMMUNITY SUPPORT NEEDED FOR FLORIDA FOOD BANKS

Winn-Dixie launches donation program to help hungry children thrive in school

Local food banks, including Feeding South Florida, are preparing for the upcoming school year and the fight against childhood hunger. Winn-Dixie has launched the Summer Backpack Hunger Relief Program in all stores to help the one out of five children in Florida who don’t know from where their next meal will come. Customers are encouraged to donate at any store register July 16 through August 19 to help provide meals for healthy minds and bodies to thrive in the classroom. Every dollar donated will go directly to regional food banks to help fill backpacks with nutritious, fresh foods. Give a dollar. Help fill a backpack.

“As a community food provider, no issue touches the heart of our customers and associates more than childhood hunger,” said Rondel Hartwell, Winn-Dixie’s director of community involvement and charitable giving. “It’s our belief that no child should ever go hungry and that every child deserves nutritious meals and a healthy start to life.”

Added Hartwell, “the Winn-Dixie Summer Backpack Hunger Relief Program provides a quick and easy way for our communities to help give hungry children a nutritious meal.”

The 18 food banks benefitting from the Winn-Dixie Summer Backpack Hunger Relief Program include:

America’s Second Harvest of Coastal Georgia, Inc.                                   Savannah, Ga.

Feeding Northeast Florida                                                                                 Jacksonville, Fla.

Feeding America Tampa Bay                                                                            Tampa, Fla.

Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida                                            Orlando, Fla.

All Faiths Food Bank                                                                                          Sarasota, Fla.

Food Bank of Manatee                                                                                       Bradenton, Fla.

Harry Chapin Food Bank of Southwest Florida                                          Ft. Myers, Fla.

Feeding South Florida                                                                                        Pembroke Park, Fla.

Treasure Coast Food Bank                                                                                Fort Pierce, Fla.

America’s Second Harvest of the Big Bend, Inc.                                         Tallahassee, Fla.

Bay Area Food Bank                                                                                            Theodore, Ala.

Community Food Bank of Central Alabama                                                 Birmingham, Ala.

Feeding the Valley Food Bank                                                                          Columbus, Ga.

Montgomery Area Food Bank                                                                           Montgomery, Ala.

Second Harvest Food Bank of South Georgia                                                Valdosta, Ga.

Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank                                                                       Baton Rouge, La.

Mississippi Food Network                                                                                  Jackson, Miss.

Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana       New Orleans, La.

 

Winn-Dixie has a rich history of supporting its neighborhoods and communities through foundation and vendor supported charitable donations and programs. The company’s associates don’t just work in the stores; they live in these neighborhoods and are passionate about building stronger, healthier communities. Winn-Dixie encourages customers to address the childhood hunger needs in their communities by making donations at store registers as they complete their grocery shopping.

About Winn-Dixie

Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. is a subsidiary of Bi-Lo Holdings, which is the fifth-largest conventional supermarket in the United States based on store count. Founded in 1925, Winn-Dixie employs more than 48,000 associates who serve customers in 546 grocery stores and 418 in-store pharmacies throughout the five southeastern states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi.  For more information, please visit www.winn-dixie.com and www.biloholdings.com.