We’d like to say a big “thank-you” to the more than 400 volunteers who came together yesterday to help halt hunger for 6,000 children and families in the greater Twin Cities during the second annual Feeding Who’s Hungry event!
The day was also made possible by the Minneapolis Pipefitters Union Training Center, which generously donated their space in the northwest suburbs to host the event.
During Feeding Who’s Hungry, volunteers worked together to assemble a variety of food-related kits including snack packs, weekend meal kits, pantry staples, and kitchen utensils. The kits were picked up that same day by 11 United Way community partners for distribution to families and children in their programs.
“It makes me feel appreciative of what I have and concerned of what others struggle to get,” said Teresa Geraets, HR at Wells Fargo. “Hopefully, the people who receive these kits will know that a stranger out there was thinking about them.”
“It’s important to volunteer and give back to the community,” said Jack Gorman, Accounting Analyst at Xcel Energy. “We’re fortunate to work for a company that gives us time off to do things like this.”
“I’m very impressed- it’s super organized and I liked hearing about the impact we’ll help make and all the different organizations that will benefit,” said Emily Kohlmann, Business Analyst at Optum.
“Our team came out because it looked like a fantastic event,” said Stacy Elhadad, Guest Services Manager at Target. “We are really dedicated to helping others- it’s one of our core values and beliefs.”
Greater Twin Cities United Way’s new food security program officer, Saroeun Earm, also spoke about the importance of creative collaboration with nonprofit community partners.
“We are thinking bigger and bolder so we can disrupt the inequities in our local food system,” she said.
A similar, larger-scale event that also lets volunteers make a big impact in a short amount of time will take place August 8 at the Xcel Energy Center. Called Action Day, the community will come together to pack 40,000 backpacks filled with school supplies to send local kids back to class set up for success. Join us for Action Day.
To hear more about volunteer events like Feeding Who’s Hungry and hear about all of United Way’s volunteer opportunities through Volunteer United, sign up for our e-newsletter.
