PADUCAH, Ky. - Through their DOE Feds Feed Families program, EM Paducah Site workers raised funds to purchase about 130,000 pounds of food for local nonprofits whose mission is to provide local families with reliable access to affordable, nutritious food.
One in four children and one in six adults in the U.S. do not know where their next meal is coming from, according to Salvation Army Lt. David W. Donegan.
“We are grateful to the Department of Energy and their contractors for supporting our summer feeding programs and our choice food pantry program in Paducah," Donegan said. “These donations from the Feds Feed Families program help us fill that gap."
EM and its contractors at the Paducah Site, including Four Rivers Nuclear Partnership (FRNP), Swift & Staley, Enterprise Technical Assistance Services (ETAS), and Mid-America Conversion Services (MCS), teamed up to collect the equivalent of 130,000 pounds of food for the annual Feds Feed Families campaign.
Each company found fun and creative ways to raise funds for this year’s campaign. FRNP organized a cake auction and bake sale to help teach fundamental networking skills to college interns. The interns worked with professional mentors and senior managers to collect baked goods and funds to make the event a success. ETAS coordinated an ice cream social to help personnel beat the heat and MCS employees launched a friendly online competition between internal departments to raise money.
“Our contractors continue to grow the Feds Feed Families program with their innovative fundraising events, which allows our local nonprofits to put more food on the shelves for families in need," Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office Manager Joel Bradburne said.
This year’s campaign benefited 10 local nonprofits: Marcella’s Kitchen in Marshall County, Kentucky; Community Kitchen, Family Service Society, Paducah Cooperative Ministry, Martha’s Vineyard, Salvation Army, St. Vincent de Paul and River City Mission in McCracken County, Kentucky; St. Mary’s Food Pantry in Ballard County, Kentucky; and COPE Food Pantry in Massac County, Illinois.
Source: U.S. Dept. of Energy, Office of Environmental Management