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Weakley County Backpack Program selected for $20K grant

Weakley County Backpack Program selected for $20K grant

Posted: Wednesday, May 15, 2013 12:00 am

The Weakley County Backpack Program has been selected as one of 60 winning hunger relief agencies to receive a $20,000 grant from Walmart’s Fighting Hunger Together initiative.
Throughout April, customers voted for more than 300 Feeding America food banks and their partner agencies by visiting www.walmart.com/hunger.
As a result of the votes cast, 100 food banks and partner agencies will receive a total of $3 million in grants — 40 Feeding America member food banks will receive $1.8 million in grants ($45k each) and 60 of their partner agencies will receive $1.2 million in grants ($20k each).
The Weakley County Backpack Program is one of 61,000 Feeding America partner agencies located throughout the United States.
The Feeding America network of food banks and their partner food assistance agencies, such as food pantries, soup kitchens, emergency shelters and after-school programs, feed 37 million people annually, including nearly 14 million children.
One-hundred percent of all donations are used to purchase easy-to-prepare and nutritious food for the students in the Backpack Program.  This grant will be no different.
The $20,000 will be used to purchase food for the 2013-14 school year. 
It will cover the cost of food cost for about half of the school year.    
“We want to thank the local organizations, volunteers and customers who participated in this campaign and work to support their communities year round,” said Julie Gehrki, senior director of the Walmart Foundation. “Through their efforts, we can bring attention to the need local communities experience during the spring months and help fill the gap by providing ways for customers to generate millions of meals and volunteer.”
The Fighting Hunger Together initiative is part of Walmart’s and the Walmart Foundation’s $2 billion commitment through 2015 to fight hunger.
To learn more about the program and Walmart’s commitment, visit www.walmart.com/hunger.

Published in The WCP 5.14.13