Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, June 28, 1994 TAG: 9406300067
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: By LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
The statewide food drive failed in its first year to draw sufficient attention. A campaign with a goal of raising $200,000 for Virginia food distribution centers raised $57,000 in contributions, $10,000 of it in the southwestern part of the state.
So sponsors scaled back their efforts this year. The campaign will run for five weeks instead of six. No fund-raising goal was set.
And the full-color signs have been put off until next year.
Irvine is no less determined about attracting enough contributors to double last year's donations.
"A large percentage of special events are not truly successful until the third year," Irvine said at a news conference Monday to kick off this year's "Check Out Hunger in Virginia" campaign.
"It takes the first year for people to understand them, the second year to fine tune some of the problems or issues. By the third year, the general public is aware of them as well as the whole community."
The campaign is the Federation of Virginia Food Banks' effort to raise money while heightening public awareness about hunger. Contributions are made at the checkout counters of participating retailers, including Kroger, Winn-Dixie, Harris Teeter and Lowe's.
Through July 31, bar-coded coupons will be on display at checkout counters. For every coupon that shoppers hand to the cashier, one dollar will be added to the shopper's grocery bill.
The money will be used by Virginia food banks to cover the cost of supplying donated food to 2,465 state charitable organizations.
"One out of five children in the United States goes to bed hungry," said Irvine, citing statistics compiled by Second Harvest, the nation's largest charitable food program. "There is no excuse for a country that has so much to give so little. National food donations are drying up."
The Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest FoodBank operates like a giant grocery store for its nonprofit member agencies - homeless shelters, halfway houses, soup kitchens and food pantries.
It receives donations from manufacturers and other sources, such as Kroger Co.'s salvage warehouse, and sells the donated food to its member agencies for a small per pound price.
The FoodBank spends $22,000 to $27,000 a year in operating costs, much of it to transport food to its 3,000-square-foot warehouse on Shenandoah Avenue, Irvine said. The organization distributed 2.6 million pounds of food last year.
"Most of our revenue comes from agencies that we serve," she said. "But we must raise 50 to 60 percent of our revenue through special events, foundations, corporations and grants."
For more information about the food drive, contact the Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest FoodBank at 342-3011.
by CNB