FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PHILABUNDANCE HOLDS FIRST-EVER HUNGER HERO AWARDS

Area’s Largest Hunger Relief Organization Honors Community Leaders

Philadelphia, PA, Sept. 18, 2019 – To celebrate Hunger Action Month, Philabundance last Wednesday held its first annual Agency Appreciation brunch to celebrate its community partners’ hard work feeding neighbors in need. The Hunger Heroes brunch, generously presented by Aetna, included an award ceremony to honor the eight most outstanding agency partners for work that distinguished them in the fight against hunger. Philabundance provides free food to 90,000 people each week, which would be impossible without the help of its more than 350 member agencies in New Jersey and Pennsylvania.

Awardees are:

• • • Michael Bennett, Upper Room Missionary Baptist Church, Philadelphia, PA 19138
    • Ariel Ressler MacNeill, Nationalities Service Center, Philadelphia, PA 19107
    • Britt Peterson, Manna on Main Street, Lansdale, PA 19446
    • Marlene Trice, Kitchen of Love, Philadelphia, PA 19150
    • Clarice & Maurice Smith, Mt. Zion CME, Sharon Hill, PA 19079
    • Jeff Truax, Mid-Atlantic States Career and Education Center, Pennsville, NJ 08070
    • Carol Vidal, Kennett Area Community Service, Kennett Square, PA 19348
    • Gregory Wright, Edward Gideon School, Philadelphia, PA 19121

“The agencies we work with are the lifeblood of our network,” said Glenn Bergman, Executive Director of Philabundance. “Thanks to them, we are able to collectively distribute more than 28 million pounds of food a year in the Delaware Valley. I am humbled by the work agencies do, and I thank them for their commitment.”

Philabundance held the awards at Philadelphia’s Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum. The morning of gratitude was supported by Aetna because the collaborator knows hunger and health are linked.

“Through partnerships like this, we empower Philadelphians to take more control of their health and the factors that influence it,” said Don Mazza, Aetna Medicare Solutions Market Head of Sales, Keystone Market. “That’s why Aetna is excited to support organizations like Philabundance that help bring healthy food to all members of our communities.”

For more information or to request an interview and photos, please contact Lisa Ryan, Public Relations Associate at Philabundance, at lryan@philabundance.org or 724-259-3524 x. 1155.

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About Philabundance

Philabundance is the Delaware Valley’s largest hunger relief organization, seeking to drive hunger from our communities today and end hunger for good. In 2018, it distributed more than 26 million pounds through a network of 350 member agencies, and partnerships with hospitals, schools, libraries and other service providers. Philabundance serves more than 90,000 people each week, 30 percent of whom are children, 16 percent of whom are seniors, and others served include college students, single parents and the working class. Give now or learn more at Philabundance.org.