La Familia de Broward Una herramienta útil para las necesidades de las familias hispanas
Bank of America in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties today announced a $120,000 combined donation worth 1,080,000 meals to Feeding South Florida to address food insecurity in the region. In addition, Bank of America in Miami-Dade County also gave Banco de Alimentos de Puerto Rico $25,000 to help address food insecurity in that region. It is estimated that 1 in 9 South Floridians are food insecure, with over 700,000 people not knowing from where they will get their next meal, according to Feeding South Florida. As the pandemic continues, hunger relief organizations in Miami-Dade and Broward Counties and across the country are facing ongoing challenges, such as increased demand for their services and rising food prices.
Bank of America is supporting its employees’ health and safety while addressing one of the local communities’ most critical needs. Earlier this year, the company announced it would make a $100 donation to local hunger relief organizations and food banks for each employee who received a COVID-19 booster shot or vaccine and notified the bank before the end of January to address the increased need in that region.
Feeding South Florida is the fifth largest food bank in the United States and the leading domestic hunger relief organization serving 25% of the state’s food insecure population throughout Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe Counties. This donation will allow Feeding South Florida to continue the rollout of its innovative programs including culinary and warehouse training, its “Food Is Medicine” initiatives such as the Mobile FARMacy and hospital pantries, the creation of cutting-edge technology designed to measure output in real time, home delivery programs, providing wraparound services like SNAP benefits, Summer BreakSpots, and so much more. For every $1 donated, the organization can provide nine meals to the community. With help from the bank’s donation, Feeding South Florida is providing 1,080,000 of meals to individuals and families throughout South Florida.
The bank has been a partner of Feeding South Florida since 2010 and in that time, the bank, via the Miami-Dade and Broward County markets, has granted the organization with nearly a million in financial support.
“We are incredibly grateful to Bank of America for its generous donation to help us put food on the table for South Florida families who need it the most,” said Paco Vélez, president and CEO of Feeding South Florida. “This donation comes at a critical time, when the demand for food has increased significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, inflation at its highest in 13 years, and the cost of food rising.”
Nationally, the bank has committed $10.6 million dollars to food banks and hunger relief organizations through this effort. Since 2015, Bank of America has donated nearly $150 million toward hunger relief efforts.
“As the pandemic continues to impact Miami-Dade and Broward Counties, food banks and hunger relief organizations such as Feeding South Florida are experiencing increased demand and higher costs to meet the needs of individuals and families,” said Gene Schaefer, President, Bank of America Miami. “Our commitment to help strengthen the communities we live in and serve is unwavering, which is why we are investing in the health, safety and wellbeing of our teammates while also providing funds to help local organizations support our neighbors and fight food insecurity.”
Bank of America committed to donating a minimum of $25,000 in each of the company’s 93 markets to local nonprofit partners as part its vaccine booster effort. Because vaccination boosters and reporting are voluntary and additional company contributions are reflected in the final amount, actual donation amounts differ from the number of boosters reported by bank employees.
The company has encouraged staff to get COVID-19 vaccinations since summer 2021 and has offered incentives such as paid time-off and $500 credits towards health benefit premiums. In partnership with local nonprofits, Bank of America has also distributed more than 38 million masks, 41,000 cases of hand sanitizer and 11 million gloves in local communities as part of its ongoing efforts to address health-related disparities accelerated by the pandemic.
About Feeding South Florida®
Feeding South Florida is a member of the Feeding America network of food banks and the leading domestic hunger-relief organization serving Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe Counties. Providing support for 25 percent of the state’s food insecure population, its mission is to end hunger in South Florida by providing immediate access to nutritious food, leading hunger and poverty advocacy efforts, and transforming lives through innovative programming and education. In addition to providing over 90 million pounds of food (75 million meals) to nearly one million individuals through direct-service programs and a local network of over 350 community partners, Feeding South Florida addresses the root causes of hunger and breaks the cycle of poverty through its workforce training, food is medicine and client services programming. Visitwww.feedingsouthflorida.org or call 954.518.1818.
About Bank of America
At Bank of America, we’re guided by a common purpose to help make financial lives better, through the power of every connection. We’re delivering on this through responsible growth with a focus on our environmental, social and governance (ESG) leadership. ESG is embedded across our eight lines of business and reflects how we help fuel the global economy, build trust and credibility, and represent a company that people want to work for, invest in and do business with. It’s demonstrated in the inclusive and supportive workplace we create for our employees, the responsible products and services we offer our clients, and the impact we make around the world in helping local economies thrive. An important part of this work is forming strong partnerships with nonprofits and advocacy groups, such as community, consumer and environmental organizations, to bring together our collective networks and expertise to achieve greater impact. Learn more at about.bankofamerica.com, and connect with us on Twitter (@BofA_News).
