Six Million Meals Provided to Give A Meal

CHICAGO, Dec. 8, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A two for one match offer by Bank of America has helped raise more than 6 million meals for Feeding America's Give A Meal campaign less than a month after launching.  

The unprecedented success of the program was bolstered by a generous match from Bank of America and its customers. This week the bank announced that they were increasing their support and pledged an additional $500,000 through Bank of America's Gift for Opportunity™ fund in matching dollars to the campaign for a potential total match of $1 million.

"Without the generous support of Bank of America and all of our partners we wouldn't have been able to reach six million meals donated so quickly," said Vicki Escarra, President and CEO of Feeding America, the nation's largest domestic hunger-relief organization. "It really shows that collectively we can make sure that our friends, neighbors and co-workers won't have to worry about where their next meal is coming from this holiday season."

As the campaign's signature partner, Bank of America will contribute $2 for every $1 donated via feedingamerica.org/BankofAmerica or bankofamerica.com/give, now up to a total match of $1 million in order to make three times the difference in the fight against hunger.  This is in addition to a $1 million contribution to Feeding America.

"With nearly 49 million Americans struggling with hunger, we couldn't be happier with the overwhelming response the Gift for Opportunity fund has received to date," said Kerry Sullivan, President, Bank of America Charitable Foundation.  "We continue to be amazed and grateful for the generosity of individuals during these challenging times and we're pleased to extend our corporate match to make three times the difference to help feed those at risk of hunger."

The Give A Meal campaign is also being supported by a number of celebrity and corporate partners.

Emmy Award winning talk show host Rachael Ray, celebrity Chef Mario Batali, host of ABC's The Chew, Australian chef and television star Curtis Stone, rock sensations Benji and Joel Madden, Entertainment Tonight correspondent Samantha Harris, Grammy Award winning singer Monica, Food Network star Ellie Krieger, chef and TV host Sara Gore, TV food critic and host Katie Lee, Extra Virgin husband and wife hosts actress Debi Mazar and chef Gabriele Corcos, and the platinum selling band OneRepublic have all lent their name to the effort.

Along with Bank of America, a number of other corporate partners have agreed to team up with Feeding America to fight hunger this holiday season. Corporate leaders such as Dillard's, HMSHost, HoneyBaked Ham, and Winn-Dixie have all also joined the Give a Meal effort and are partnering with their customers to donate meals this holiday season.

A running counter will be displayed on the Give a Meal webpage to tally the number of meals that have been donated during the campaign.

About Feeding America
Feeding America provides low-income individuals and families with the fuel to survive and even thrive. As the nation's leading domestic hunger-relief charity, our network members supply food to more than 37 million Americans each year, including 14 million children and 3 million seniors. Serving the entire United States, more than 200 member food banks support 61,000 agencies that address hunger in all of its forms. For more information on how you can fight hunger in your community and across the country, visit http://www.feedingamerica.org. Find us on Facebook at facebook.com/FeedingAmerica or follow our news on Twitter at twitter.com/FeedingAmerica.

Contact(s):

Shannon Traeger
FeedingAmerica America
312.641.6422                                       
[email protected]                  

SOURCE Feeding America