Cathy Lee owner of C.L. Design Services Home Staging and Brian Rogan, California Custom Carpets, sponsored the 2nd Annual Harvest Food Drive at the Elk’s Lodge, Walnut Creek , May 21st at 7:30pm. Brian’s East Bay Party Band, High Cotton, entertained the crowd as 349 lbs of canned goods were donated to the Food Bank.
High Cotton Band
For more information contact Cathy Lee at www.cldesignservices.com.
The Diablo Singles Dance Club’s collected $974 at their first fundraising event held for the benefit of the Food Bank in April. The event included ballroom dancing to the music of the Nob Hill Sounds. The theme for the evening was “Western Night” and everyone came dressed in their best western wear.
Diablo Singles Dance Club presents Food Bank executive director Larry Sly with a check for $974.
The Diablo Singles Dance Club feel that they are so fortunate to have the gifts of good health and plenty to eat that they need to share with the less fortunate of our community. The dance club is made up of singles ranging in age from 29 to 92; some of the members have been through the great depression and World War II, so they know firsthand of how it is to “fall on hard times”. They meet the last Wednesday of each month at the Civic Arts Building on Ygnacio Valley Road and Wiget Lane in Walnut Creek. They would love new friends to come out and dance the night away.
Larry Sly greets Chris Johns, President of PG&E (right) and Mark Johnson, VP of Electric Operations at PG&E (left) at a community work event at the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. PG&E’s Black Employee Resource Group spent a Saturday afternoon sorting food at the Food Bank warehouse. In addition, Mark Johnson serves as a member of the Food Bank’s Board of Directors and PG&E provides financial support to the Food Bank.
PG&E and PG&E Employees are also two of the sponsors for the Food Bank’s tenth annual An Afternoon in the Admiral’s Garden to be held June 27 at Mare Island in Vallejo.
Food from the Bar is one of the most successful fundraisers for the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. This year, local law firms are banding together for the first time to participate in a joint 5K Walk-A-Thon to benefit the Food Bank. On Friday, May 7, over 80 participants will don their walking shoes to trek 3.1 miles around downtown Walnut Creek to fight hunger through the Food from the Bar campaign.
Since 1992, the Contra Costa County Bar Association (CCCBA) has sponsored an annual food and fundraising competition where local law firms, solo practitioners and county legal offices vie to raise the most per capita money for the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano, in an event dubbed “Food from the Bar” (FFTB). Since FFTB began, attorneys and staff have raised $740,000 and over 52 tons of food for the Food Bank.
As the organizer of the event, Archer Norris PLC is proud to walk with fellow firms: McNamara, Dodge, Ney, Beatty, Slattery, Pfalzer, Borges & Brothers LLP; Miller Starr Regalia PLC; The Law Offices of Gagen, McCoy, McMahon, Koss, Markowitz & Raines, APC; Timken Johnson Hwang LLP; Van De Poel, Levy & Allen, LLP, along with other individuals in the community.
Each $50 registration fee for the Walk-A-Thon directly assists the Food Bank, and participants also receive sponsor donations from family, friends and colleagues. The top three participants who raise the most additional money for the Food Bank win a gift certificate to Sports Basement, a Walk-A-Thon sponsor.
“For the past 18 years, law firms have challenged one another to find new and exciting ways to raise money for FFTB, which ultimately provides food for thousands of Contra Costa and Solano county residents each month” explains Ed Shaffer, Archer Norris partner and FFTB committee Chair for the CCCBA. “This year participating firms are challenging each other in a new way; by coming together in a single fundraising Walk-A-Thon, we hope to raise more money for the Food Bank than ever before.”
The 15th Annual Food From The Bar Comedy Night for the Food Bank (called “RES IPSA JOKUITOR”) took place at Back Forty Texas BBQ in Pleasant Hill on April 27. This event was the place to be for great food, friends, prizes and laughs! Justice James Marchiano served as MC and started the evening off with his annual joke. Opening Act Andrew Norelli, who has performed nationally, gave a clever and professional routine that had the audience in stitches. Headliner Bob Sarlatte regaled the audience with stories from his many appearances on David Letterman and his long career as a performer – as well as his role as announcer for the 49’ers. The Food Bank collected almost 200 pounds of beef stew graciously donated by our guests.
The Food Bank would like to thank these generous sponsors for making this event so successful:
This event kicked off the 18th Annual Food From The Bar, a two week food/fund drive. Last year’s winners of this competition were:
Good luck to each and every firm participating this year! We look forward to hearing about your fundraising experiences.
Fueled by the generous contributions of its customers, Contra Costa and Solano counties area Panera Bread® bakery-cafes in Antioch, Concord and Vacaville are donating a total of $8120.35 to the Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano, Panera Bread’s Operation Dough-Nationâ recipient, contributed in 2009. The funds will be used to further Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano mission of helping the needy in the Contra Costa and Solano neighborhoods.
For the past 17 years, Panera and its franchisees have helped dozens of charitable organizations through Operation Dough-Nation, a program that allows Panera Bread and its customers to make a positive impact in the community in several ways. For example, a portion of all customer donations made in Community Breadbox™ containers near the registers are matched with cash by participating Panera Bread locations for distribution to local charities, such as Food Bank of Contra Costa and Solano. And at the end of the day, local cafes also donate unsold bread and baked goods to local hunger relief agencies through the company’s Day-End Dough-Nation™ program.
“We are proud to share ‘Panera Warmth’ with members of our local community throughout the year,” said Todd McDermott, Joint Venture Partner “Bread is an important part of our culture – it brings people together – and Panera is dedicated to giving back to the people who have welcomed us into their neighborhoods and invited us to share in their lives.”
clockwise from the lower left: Adis Bajramovic, Brandy Earnest, Todd McDermott, Lisa Sherrill, Mark Stuart, Emily Diefenbach, Brian Jackson, David Warehime.
Nationwide, Panera Bread and its franchisees have helped numerous non-profit organizations through Operation Dough-Nation. Thanks to the generosity of its customers, Panera Bread and its franchisees will donate more than $1 million to dozens of charities raised in 2009. Over the years, contributions have helped organizations including local food banks and pantries, Meals on Wheels, Make a Wish Foundation, American Cancer Society, Special Olympics, Habitat for Humanity and many others. Panera Bread bakery-cafes collectively donated over $50 million worth of unsold bread and baked goods in 2009 to help people in need.
For more information on how to support local Operation Dough-Nation programs, visit your neighborhood Panera Bread bakery-cafe. To find the closest location, visit www.panerabread.com.
Congregations around the country participate in this one-day ecumenical fundraiser, held each year on Super Bowl Sunday. This is an opportunity for the youth in local churches to help feed families and children in our community. Eighteen of our local churches participated in collecting almost $8,800 along with donations of food. Over $10 million was raised nationwide this year! Don’t forget to mark your calendar for next year’s event, which will be on February 6, 2011.
The Feeding America nationwide network of food banks is among the charities that will benefit from this year’s American Idol fundraising special, Idol Gives Back. Be sure to tune in to Idol Gives Back on Wednesday, April 21 at 8/7c PM on FOX. We’re excited not only for their generosity, but also for this great opportunity to spread awareness about hunger in our country — a true national emergency! See how you can get involved in Idol Gives Back and support the fight against hunger in America.
The Emmy Award-winning television event and musical celebration will raise awareness and funds to benefit various U.S. and international charities, during the Top 7 Results Show. Donations made to the Idol Gives Back Foundation will help the children and families most affected by these tough economic times. You can get more information about the event and hear from Season 9 Finalists on the new Idol Gives Back section of American Idol’s website (http://www.americanidol.com/idolgivesback/). Visitors to the page can make donations prior to the event or join the Help Me Give Back program and raise their own funds by creating individual fundraising pages or joining fundraising teams.
All of the funds raised by the Idol Gives Back Foundation and granted to Feeding America will support the campaign for a Hunger-Free America ensuring that the Feeding America network will continue the fight against hunger with innovative programming and persistent advocacy.
Ready, Set, Bag! is partnering with local food banks to feed hungry families. Together with their fans and sponsors, Ready, Set, Bag! is generously donating 100% of their advertising revenue from their recently launched blip.tv channel and $1.00 of each ticket sale (both in theatres and on DVD) for their Ready, Set, Bag! documentary film. Ready, Set, Bag! has already donated enough funds for over 4,500 meals and arranged for other online artists including JibJab, AutoTuneTheNews, Sarah Austin and Mike Relm to help create content and contribute to this overall effort to help fight hunger.
Ready, Set, Bag! Documentary Film
Every February competitive grocery baggers from across the country meet in Las Vegas to vie for the title of National Best Bagger. Ready, Set, Bag! explores the lives of eight state champions, following these delightfully fun, quintessentially American characters from local contests to their moment on the national stage. Ready Set Bag! has been selected for the upcoming Sonoma International Film Festival. The screening will be taking place on Saturday, April 17 at 9:30 am. For more information, visit: www.sonomafilmfest.org
Help support your local food bank by checking out http://www.readysetbag.blip.tv/ and learning more about Ready Set Bag!
Become a fan of Ready, Set, Bag! on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/readysetbag
James Hunter at the California State Championship
For 4 days only — March 18 -21, shop at Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic, Gap Outlet, and Banana Republic Factory Stores and enjoy 30% off while 5% of the amount you spend is donated to Feeding America. So in a time when our communities need it most, your shopping counts for more.
