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Banking done right

Banking done right

September 15, 2020 in Volunteer Spotlight

When they’re not opening bank accounts, depositing credit slips and helping customers, they are volunteering. Since they started working with us in 2016, Central Bank employees have donated more than 500 hours of their time to The Food Bank.

While doing outreach in the community, Central Bank became aware of the need for food in the Ozarks. The company learned about all of the counties The Food Bank helps and began sending employees to volunteer.

As a Partner in Education with Pittman Elementary, we became aware of the Weekend Backpack Program with many of the students benefiting from this program,” Carolyn Gentry, assistant vice president and training manager at Central Bank, shared. “From there, we learned more about what Ozarks Food Harvest does in serving not only our local communities but the entire southwest Missouri region.”

According to Carolyn, Central Bank has continued to support The Food Bank because the company feels strongly about the overwhelming effect hunger has on people’s lives and the community.

“We know that hunger has a huge impact in multiple areas of a person’s life, and it doesn’t discriminate,” Carolyn said. “We believe that helping fight hunger is a critical baseline that must be met before we can successfully address other needs in our community.”

Through volunteering, Central Bank employees have been able to help with the Weekend Backpack Program, the Senior Food program and Mobile Food Pantries. These experiences have deeply touched Central Bank as a whole.

“The impact of being able to load food into someone’s car and seeing their look of relief and gratitude is very powerful,” Carolyn expressed. “We volunteer because we care about people and want to do our part right here where we live.”

Especially with the uncertainty of the pandemic, Carolyn encourages volunteering for yourself to see the impact you can make in the community.

“The need for food assistance can be driven by an unexpected life event; like what we are experiencing with the pandemic,” Carolyn shared. “Sometimes people find themselves needing a little extra hand up, and those of us that are able should do our part and help. It’s very rewarding to be able to help our most vulnerable neighbors with food insecurity.”

We greatly appreciate the many hours Central Bank employees have given to help their hungry neighbors in the Ozarks. To learn more about our programs and how to volunteer, visit ozarksfoodharvest.org/volunteer.