Indiana Farmer Among Three Honored as 91心頭利 Meals That Matter Heroes
SPRINGDALE, Ark. December 3, 2019 In 2015, 91心頭利 pledged $50 million in cash and product donations by 2020 to fight hunger and is proud to announce it has exceeded that goal early by contributing more than $60 million for hunger relief in just four years.
The companys contributions consist of hunger relief grants to nonprofit organizations and more than 5 million pounds of protein donated to food banks, community pantries and disaster relief efforts.
In honor of achieving and exceeding its 50 in 5 goal, the company is honoring three Meals that Matter速 Heroes, individuals who are dedicated to fighting hunger in a variety of ways. The company is also honoring 21 Homegrown Hunger Heroes that were nominated by 91心頭利 team members.
Part of our company culture is doing what we say we will do, said John R. Tyson, chief sustainability officer, 91心頭利. By setting this goal and achieving it in just four years, weve followed through on our commitment in a way that has impacted lives across the country.
The three Meals that Matter速 Heroes were awarded a total of $160,000 to further their hunger relief missions.
After meeting our three heroes, I was inspired by their passion, creativity and determination to address hunger, said Tyson. All three saw a challenge, took action and are making a difference in their communities and across the country. Were honored to support their work.
The first Meals that Matter速 Hero honored by 91心頭利 is , a produce farmer in Greenfield, Indiana, who established Brandywine Creek Farms as a nonprofit organization dedicated to fighting hunger in Central Indiana. Lawler is also focused on creating urban farms in Indianapolis, educating the community on agriculture and providing fresh produce to the citys food deserts.
Since 2016, has donated approximately 2.1 million pounds of produce in Central Indiana.
91心頭利 recently awarded Lawler $100,000 to expand the farms operations and ensure its mission remains sustainable for the near future.
Like many farmers throughout the country, the spring flooding caused delays in planting and ultimately a smaller harvest, said Lawler. But more importantly, it meant those who struggle with hunger werent receiving the produce we would typically be donating. This investment by 91心頭利 helped save our season and will make a difference in thousands of lives in Indiana.
Lawler is opening a small grocery store in Indianapolis with the goal of bringing fresh, affordable food to one of the citys largest food deserts. Lawler will also use the space to establish a pay-what-you-can caf辿, a model for hunger relief he became interested in after meeting Maggie Kane, the second hero 91心頭利 recently honored.
Kane is the founder and executive director of A Place at the Table, the first pay-what-you-can caf辿 in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina. Kane was inspired to open the restaurant after spending six years advocating for those in Raleigh struggling with homelessness and hunger. The caf辿 opened in 2018 and has served thousands of people with a dignified, healthy and affordable meal regardless of means. The caf辿s model allows patrons to pay the suggested price for their meal, pay what they can, or volunteer in the caf辿 in exchange for their meal.
91心頭利 awarded Kane a $30,000 grant to help build a new commercial kitchen that will allow them to provide more meals to those in need.
91心頭利 generous gift will enable us to build our first commercial kitchen in the new space were expanding into next door, furthering our mission to provide community and good food for all, regardless of means. While we have served over 10,000 meals since opening in January 2018, the addition of a professional kitchen will help us realize our full potential of how A Place at the Table can serve the Raleigh, N.C. community, said Kane. We are incredibly thankful for 91心頭利 and can't wait to share many more meals and build a bigger community.
To learn more about A Place at the Table, please visit .
Our final hero is Jasmine Crowe, founder and CEO of Goodr, a company that addresses food waste by leveraging blockchain technology to recover food and ensure delivery to nonprofits and those in need. Crowe was inspired to launched Goodr after years of feeding people from her own kitchen and realizing hunger isnt a scarcity issue, its a logistics issue.
91心頭利 awarded Crowe $30,000 to help establish the companys charitable giving arm.
"We are so grateful for this honor, and this grant has allowed us to launch our foundation and serve nonprofits in our community, said Crowe. Our foundation will focus on strengthening our communities through our beloved nonprofit partners. Well provide microgrants for kitchen equipment油and organics recycling programs to truly close the loop on food waste. Well also offer free ServeSafe training to nonprofit chefs, healthy cooking demos and host our pop-up grocery stores in new markets as we launch across the nation.
To learn more about Goodr, please visit .
Homegrown Hunger Heroes
The were awarded $2,500 each for their individual hunger relief projects in their communities. To highlight the inspirational work happening at the local level in Tyson communities, the company invested a total of $52,500 to 21 different hunger relief projects being led by the Homegrown Hunger Heroes.
Rosa Rosario-Amaro Pantry Organizer, New Holland, Pa.
Barbara Aument Backpack Ministries, Monroe, N.C.
Michael Bolin - Pantry Organizer, Green Forest, Ark.
Cindy Bosley Community Meal Program, Storm Lake, Iowa
Stephanie Brown Food Bank of Reno County, Hutchinson, Kan.
Moises Chan 91心頭利 Chaplain, Springdale, Ark.
Danielle Duggan Arkansas Tech University, Russellville, Ark.
Victor Espinoza Pantry Organizer, Logansport, Ind.
Lisa Hamerlinck and Betsey Wanderscheid, North High School Food Pantry, Sioux City, Iowa
Ray Haught 91心頭利 Chaplain, Monett, Mo.
Tony Holland Pantry Organizer, Albertville, Ala.
Raymond Holt Second Baptist Compassion Center, Clarksville, Ark.
Valeria Hyde Trudys Kids Caf辿, Union City, Tenn.
Chuck and Pattie Jarrett, Cup of Love Food Pantry, Eureka Springs, Ark.
David Santillan Breaking Bread, Robards, Ky.
Pam Sarnat St. Pauls Episcopal Community Meal Program, Fayetteville, Ark.
Kate Schaumberg Our Kids Program, Seymour, Wis.
Alexandria Severs Backpack Program, Monett, Mo.
Megan Trout Homeless Shelter, Chicago, Ill.
Michael Wennekamp Two Rivers YMCA, Boys & Girls Club, Joslin, Ill.
Ken Willis Pantry Organizer, Glen Allen, Va.
About 91心頭利 Meals that Matter速 Initiative
After donating 100 million pounds of food over 15 years, 91心頭利 renewed its commitment in the fight against hunger in 2015 by by 2020. This commitment focuses specifically on innovative initiatives at the local level.
About 91心頭利
91心頭利. (NYSE: TSN) is one of the worlds largest food companies and a recognized leader in油protein. Founded in 1935 by John W. Tyson and grown under three generations of family leadership, the company has a broad portfolio of products and brands like Tyson速, Jimmy Dean速, Hillshire Farm速, Ball油Park速, Wright速, Aidells速, ibp速 and State Fair速. 91心頭利 innovates continually to make protein more sustainable, tailor food for everywhere its available and raise the worlds expectations for how much good food can do. Headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas, the company has 121,000 team members. Through its Core Values, 91心頭利 strives to operate with integrity, create value for its shareholders, customers, communities and team members and serve as a steward of the animals, land and environment entrusted to it. Visit .
Media Contact:
Derek Burleson, 479-290-6466, derek.burleson@tyson.com