Today, a local city bus was traveling through Stark County, but it wasn’t picking up community members; it was collecting food donations for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.
For the past 20 years, Stark Area Regional Transit Authority (SARTA) has partnered with the Foodbank for its annual Harvest for Hunger Campaign. In addition to hosting their own food and funds drive, SARTA also supports the campaign by picking up food donations collected by Stark County businesses and organizations and delivering them directly to the Foodbank’s Stark County Campus.
“SARTA has been an amazing partner over the years. Stuff the Bus has always been a successful event that helps provide thousands of meals for neighbors within our community,” said Dan Flowers, Foodbank president and CEO.
SARTA made five stops to a variety of businesses that collected food items for the Foodbank. A longtime supporter of the Harvest for Hunger Campaign has been Lake Center Christian School in Hartville. During that food pickup, students helped load 6,622 pounds of food they collected onto the bus.
This year another major supporter was Fresh Mark, with employees collecting food in three locations.
“At Fresh Mark, we prioritize giving back and making a difference in the community. We’re proud to be a supporter of the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank’s mission to fight hunger for all in our community. With the help and support of our incredibly generous employees, we’re able to give back to the Foodbank and make a real difference for families in need,” said Alicia Pucky, vice president, chief people & corporate responsibility officer at Fresh Mark, Inc.
Once the SARTA bus was filled and all stops were made, it delivered food items to the Foodbank’s Stark County Campus in downtown Canton, saving the organization staff time and fuel costs. Volunteers from Huntington Bank greeted the bus and helped unload the 7,891 pounds of collected food, helping the Foodbank provide the equivalent of 7,315 meals.
In Stark County, 1 in 8 people and 1 in 6 children may struggle with hunger. The Foodbank partners with nearly 150 food programs in the county and helped provide enough food for 7.5 million meals in 2022.
The Harvest for Hunger Campaign is the Foodbank’s largest fundraising campaign that helps support food distribution all year long. The Campaign’s goal is to raise $1.12 million and 100,000 pounds of food, which will help provide enough food for 4.54 million meals. For more information or to donate to the Campaign, visit akroncantonfoodbank.org/harvest.