FoodbankSBC
Source: Foodbank of Santa Barbara County
The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County’s 2020 End Hunger Games Corporate Challenge kicked off November 1 with eight local companies participating in the month-long competition. Teams compete to see who can raise the most funds, donate the most food, provide the greatest number of volunteer hours, and offer the most social media attention to the cause of making sure everyone in Santa Barbara County who needs healthy food can receive it.
Teams earn points based on cash and food donations, volunteer hours worked and social media posts promoting the Foodbank.
“The goal of the End Hunger Games is for participating team members to gain a deeper understanding of hunger in our community and the work we do at the Foodbank,” explained Nathalie Keller, Foodbank senior development manager. “By volunteering, fundraising and donating food, we’re hoping that employees become Foodbank ambassadors.”
The Foodbank welcomes the following businesses as participants in the 2020 End Hunger Games include Amazon, Belmond El Encanto, CIO Solutions, Deckers, Sonos, UBS Financial Services, WELL Health and Yardi.
In addition to a food drive focused on donations of healthy, shelf-stable groceries and turkeys or chickens for the holiday season, participating teams are encouraged to sign up for volunteer hours, set up fundraising pages to help the Foodbank meet its $50,000 goal for the challenge, and increase community support for the Foodbank.
Three special food drop-off days have been established for competing companies to donate food. One is open to the public: Fill the Foodbank! Drive-thru Food Drive on Saturday, November 14 from 10am to 2pm at the Foodbank Santa Barbara warehouse at 4554 Hollister Avenue, adjacent to the Ben Page Youth Center.
While the corporate challenge is limited to the participating companies, anyone can donate as an individual, or in support of a competing team, by visiting the End Hunger Games website at https://donate.foodbanksbc.org/EndHungerGames2020.
The competition kicked off with an online get-together for participating businesses and ends on December 1st. An online closing ceremony will be held at which the winners of the following awards will be announced: Fundraiser Extraordinaire, Food Donor Champion, Volunteer Warrior, Best Team Spirit and Foodbank Hero. The overall highest point-scoring team will take possession for one year of the coveted Golden Turkey award. In 2019, Yardi earned the top prize.
Companies interested in participating in future End Hunger Games Corporate Challenges are encouraged to contact Nathalie Keller for more information, at nkeller@foodbanksbc.org.
