BankRI Launching Food Drive

Bank Rhode Island is launching a 7-week food drive starting Thursday, Aug. 1, at all of its 18 branches statewide, including its bank branches on Taunton Avenue and South Broadway in East Providence.

The food drive will run through Sept. 20. Each branch is partnering with a food pantry serving its location. The bank’s partner in East Providence is the East Bay Community Action Program based in Riverside.

“Holding our food drive towards the end of the summer when children no longer have access to summer meal programs and are still a few weeks from receiving meals at school will help a lot of families,” said Mark J. Meiklejohn, president and CEO of BankRI. “Our customers and staff are known for giving back, and I know they will respond generously to this effort to help pantries replenish their shelves.”

Rhode Island has the highest rate of food insecurity among New England states according to the USDA, according to Bank RI. And, each month, more than 66,000 Rhode Islanders turn to the Rhode Island Community Food Bank’s network of emergency food programs to help put food on the table for their families.

Prominently placed food collection bins will be set up in the lobbies of the bank branches. Members of the community are encouraged to donate items most-needed by food pantries: canned fruits and vegetables, canned soups and stews, pasta, breakfast cereals, brown rice, and proteins such as peanut butter, tuna, and canned and dried beans.

“We applaud BankRI for helping local food pantries to provide healthy food to families in need,” says Andrew Schiff, CEO of the Rhode Island Community Food Bank. “Community-based solutions to the challenge of hunger enable neighbors to help each other through hard times.  Right now, more than 66,000 people rely on our network of agencies for food assistance. One in three served is a child under the age of 18.”