As a part of Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s year-end campaign, “You are the Heart of our Community,” the Food Shuttle is honoring key partners from 2020. When COVID-19 hit the central part of the state, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina was one of the first major donors to step up and provide funding to kickstart emergency response efforts to stave off hunger for those impacted by the pandemic. Their nimble response to support the Food Shuttle is just one of the many initiatives that distinguish Blue Cross NC as a strategic partner in the Food Shuttle’s mission to end hunger.
In January, Blue Cross NC was a sponsor of the Food Shuttle’s signature Taste of Hope gala, which in turn raised over $126,000. Two months later, COVID-19 struck North Carolina and families across the Food Shuttle’s seven-county service area reeled from the impact—many facing hunger for the first time. Blue Cross NC stepped up with a significant investment that enabled the Food Shuttle to improve infrastructure and expand delivery operations, covering everything from PPE, boxes, fuel for trucks, and trays and pans for its frozen meals. The impact of these considerable grants continues and will assist the Food Shuttle’s ongoing response efforts as COVID-19 continues to devastate already disproportionately affected communities.
Since 2012, Blue Cross NC has partnered specifically with the Food Shuttle to make sure children do not go home hungry on weekends. Most recently for the 2019-2020 school year, the Blue Cross NC team volunteered by packing 600 BackPack Buddies bags per month—including six meals and two snacks—for children at Y.E. Smith Elementary School and the Boys and Girls Club of Durham and Orange County-John Avery Campus (BGC). This program operated as normal, delivering BackPack Buddies to both those locations, through mid-March 2020, when COVID-19 hit and the school and Boys and Girls Club closed, and the formal BackPack Buddies program halted. As the Food Shuttle pivoted to adapt to the school closures, they ramped up production of quick-frozen meals, emergency food boxes, and increased service to communities in need, much in thanks to funding provided by Blue Cross NC. BackPack Buddies product that had already been purchased was repurposed into emergency food boxes that were delivered to Y.E. Smith Elementary School families through the end of the school year.
“The remarkable support provided by Blue Cross NC empowers us to continue serving our communities in need and work to address the root causes of hunger. Together with Blue Cross NC, we are proud to work towards a healthy and hunger-free North Carolina.” says Inter-Faith Food Shuttle’s President & CEO, Ron Pringle.
Another unique relationship with Blue Cross NC is evident at the Victory Garden at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. This small but mighty garden in the heart of Durham is the result of a three-year partnership that utilizes containers, raised beds, and very small spaces to grow all kinds of food that is then distributed to Durham families and individuals who may have limited access to fresh, healthy produce. “In an effort to improve the health and well-being of our customers and communities, we are focusing our investments on addressing key drivers of health. Improving food security is one of our top priorities. Through our support of initiatives with the Durham Bulls and Inter-Faith Food Shuttle, we are not only making an investment in the community, but we are making an investment in health,” said Cheryl Parquet, Director of Community Engagement and Marketing Activation at Blue Cross NC.
Generous and lasting partnerships like the one between Blue Cross NC and Inter-Faith Food Shuttle create dependable systems that help communities in times of crisis and help people move towards food security. The Food Shuttle’s mission to end hunger would not be possible without strategic, community-focused partners like Blue Cross NC.
To learn more about forming a corporate partnership with Inter-Faith Food Shuttle, please contact Rachel Quigley at Rachel@FoodShuttle.org.