Brookshire Grocery Co. Feeds 16,000 Families With Holiday Food Drive
Brookshire Grocery Co.’s (BGC) recent Spirit of Christmas Food Drive brought in enough food to assist about 16,000 families in the Southern regional grocer’s four-state market area.
For the initiative, BGC teamed with service organizations across 110 cities, including the Kiwanis, Lions and Rotary clubs, food pantries, and relief agencies, as well as schools, law enforcement groups and fire departments.
“This is our 28th year to conduct this food drive, and it’s our largest community service project,” said Rick Rayford, president and CEO of BGC. “Many, employees and volunteers worked hard to make sure people had food at Christmas. Food collected in an area stays in that area, so customers and employees are helping their neighbors who need it.”
BGC donated a coupon for a free baking hen with each box of food distributed, as well as self-closing boxes in which volunteers packed the food. In addition, donations of nonperishable items were accepted at participating Brookshire’s and Super 1 Foods stores from Nov. 18 through Dec. 22 in most areas. Stores sold scan coupons in November, and the funds were used by partnering service groups to purchase groceries for the food drive. Many stores put together and sold grab bags of store-brand grocery items, which were also donated to the effort.
Volunteers and employees accumulated, sorted, boxed and distributed the food. Relief agencies screened the households in each community to determine need. Each family received a 20- to 30-pound or larger box of food, based on number of family members. The boxes contained items such as canned meats and vegetables, peanut butter, soups, pasta, dried beans, rice, flour, and sugar.
Tyler, Texas-based BGC operates 156 stores in the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi.
For the initiative, BGC teamed with service organizations across 110 cities, including the Kiwanis, Lions and Rotary clubs, food pantries, and relief agencies, as well as schools, law enforcement groups and fire departments.
“This is our 28th year to conduct this food drive, and it’s our largest community service project,” said Rick Rayford, president and CEO of BGC. “Many, employees and volunteers worked hard to make sure people had food at Christmas. Food collected in an area stays in that area, so customers and employees are helping their neighbors who need it.”
BGC donated a coupon for a free baking hen with each box of food distributed, as well as self-closing boxes in which volunteers packed the food. In addition, donations of nonperishable items were accepted at participating Brookshire’s and Super 1 Foods stores from Nov. 18 through Dec. 22 in most areas. Stores sold scan coupons in November, and the funds were used by partnering service groups to purchase groceries for the food drive. Many stores put together and sold grab bags of store-brand grocery items, which were also donated to the effort.
Volunteers and employees accumulated, sorted, boxed and distributed the food. Relief agencies screened the households in each community to determine need. Each family received a 20- to 30-pound or larger box of food, based on number of family members. The boxes contained items such as canned meats and vegetables, peanut butter, soups, pasta, dried beans, rice, flour, and sugar.
Tyler, Texas-based BGC operates 156 stores in the states of Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Mississippi.