Chase Donates Two Trucks to Gleaners Food Bank!
Chase Donates Two Trucks to Gleaners Food Bank!
9/2/2010
Chase Donates Two Trucks to Gleaners Food Bank
As Hunger Action Month Kicks Off
Click HERE for photos!
Trucks Will Help Move Millions of Pounds of Food to People in Need
INDIANAPOLIS, Sept. 1, 2010 • 11:00am • Monument Circle – As more local families face empty cupboards, Chase donated two new food delivery trucks to Gleaners Food Bank. The trucks were presented at a special event on Monument Circle to kick off Hunger Action Month. Senator Richard Lugar and Congressman Andre Carson took part in the presentation. The public was invited to participate by bringing a food donation and receive a Chase recyclable shopping bag. 7,031 pounds of food were donated and over $127 dollars to Gleaners Food Bank!
The trucks will increase Gleaners’ ability to collect and distribute food to its more than 350 partner agencies in 21 counties. Chase also donated funds to help with the operation of these trucks for the first year.
"We have had a record year in distribution,” said Pamela Altmeyer-Alvey, President and CEO, Gleaners Food Bank. “Demand was up 30% percent over last year. In 2008-2009 we distributed over 23.6 million pounds of food compared to the 15.9 million pounds distributed in 2007-2008.
“We are on target to meet last year’s record breaking distribution. These two new vehicles in our fleet will boost our efforts significantly and help us reach more of our neighbors in need. We are deeply grateful to Chase for this generous donation."
“These trucks will help Gleaners provide more nutritious food to our local communities, and we are especially proud to be part of this hunger relief initiative in Central Indiana,” said Dennis Bassett, Chairman of Chase in Indiana.
Chase’s donation in Indiana is part of a $5 million national grant to Feeding America and its network of food banks, including Gleaners Food Bank. This donation marks the largest single corporate donation to Feeding America.
The donation is supplying 34 trucks to 20 food banks in communities hit hard by the recession. With the new trucks, the food banks in 19 cities and communities can transport up to 1.5 million pounds of food -- the equivalent of 1,171,185 additional meals -- annually.
JPMorgan Chase has given nearly $9 million to help food bank and hunger related programs over the past 10 years, not including the recent donation to Feeding America.
Chase’s donation to Feeding America will cover the costs of purchasing and operating food delivery trucks in the following communities: Atlanta, Dallas, Detroit, Denver, Ft. Worth, Houston, Indianapolis, Jacksonville, Los Angeles, Mesa, Miami, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Newark, Orlando, Phoenix, Seattle, Tampa, and Wilmington.
About Gleaners Food Bank
Over 160,000 Hoosiers are not hungry today because Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana provides food and critical groceries to hunger relief charities. Gleaners, a member of Feeding America (formerly America's Second Harvest), was established in 1980. Since then the food bank has distributed over a quarter billion pounds of food and critical grocery products to over 350 hunger relief programs serving Hoosiers in need in 21 central and southeastern Indiana counties. To learn more, go to www.gleaners.org.
Gleaners Food Bank is a member of Feeding America, the national network of more than 200 food banks. For more information on Feeding America visit www.feedingamerica.org.
About Chase
Chase serves Indiana through 193 branches and 3,600 employees. Chase is the U.S. consumer and commercial banking business of JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM), which operates more than 5,100 branches and 15,000 ATMs nationally under the Chase brand. Chase has 146 million credit cards issued and serves consumers and small businesses through bank branches, ATMs and mortgage offices as well as through relationships with auto dealerships and schools and universities. More information about Chase is available at www.chase.com.
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Media Contacts:
Gleaners Food Bank:
Debbie Wilson, (317) 925-0191, ext. 117, dwilson@gleaners.org
Chase:
Nancy L. Norris, cell (502) 777-6379, Nancy.L.Norris@Chase.com