Media

WHAT:  Annual four-day radiothon — Hungerthon™ 2011 on Clear Channel Radio’s Alice 95.5 with Kevin Howard & Liz Delany — to raise funds for The Food Bank’s Weekend Backpack Program™

WHERE:  Alice 95.5/Clear Channel Radio, Historic Tower Theatre, 1856 S. Glenstone, Springfield, Mo.

WHEN:  6 am–7 pm Fri. 6/3, 9 am–3 pm Sat. 6/4, 10 am–2pm Sun. 6/5, and 6–10 am Mon. 6/6

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Ozarks Food Harvest and Clear Channel Radio’s Alice 95.5 FM will kick off Hungerthon 2011 tomorrow morning in hopes of raising $125,000 to support The Food Bank’s Weekend Backpack Program, which provides needy children with a backpack full of nutritious child-friendly foods for them to take home.

Between Friday, June 3 and Monday, June 6, the 13^th annual radiothon, Hungerthon, will be live for nearly 30 hours. Last year’s event raised more than $120,000 in cash and even more in secured food donations, or enough to provide 400 at-risk children with six nutritious meals over every weekend for the entire school year.

Hungerthon listeners can call (417) 577-7955 or toll free (800) 757-9550 to sponsor a child’s backpack for $300 per year or for $150 for a semester. Monthly donations are also accepted. Supporters may make a donation at the event outside the Historic Tower Theater near Glenstone and Sunshine in Springfield.

This year’s corporate sponsors include Great Southern, KPM CPA’s, Morelock-Ross Builders, Leslie Peck/Peck’s Insurance & Financial Services, Burgess, Hasting & Dunlop CPAs, Empire Bank, PaperWise, Signature Hardware, David Taylor/Taylor Communications, Springfield Grocer, Bus Andrews Equipment, Ingram Enterprises and several anonymous donors. 2011 event sponsors include Smart Chicken, Family Pharmacy and Sonic.

Thirty southwest Missouri schools participate in Ozarks Food Harvest’s Backpack Program, and approximately 30,000 backpacks were distributed last year, which included meals for two breakfasts, two lunches, two dinners, two snacks and drinks.

As in years past, Kevin Howard and Liz Delany of Alice 95.5 FM will host the four-day, community-wide event. Event hours are 6 am–7 pm Friday, 9 am–3 pm Saturday, 10 am–2 pm Sunday, and 6–10 am Monday. For more information about Hungerthon 2011, call (417) 865-3411.

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About Ozarks Food Harvest—The Food Bank
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America® food bank for southwest Missouri, servingmore than 300 hunger relief organizations across 28 Ozarks counties. The Food Bank reaches 20,000 individuals weekly and distributes nine million pounds of food annually. Ozarks Food Harvest has a 28-year history in southwest Missouri and has had nearly one dozen member food pantries and feeding sites in Joplin, and even more in Jasper County, assisting with Joplin tornado relief for months ahead. Ozarks Food Harvest was named the 2011 Small Business of the Year by the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce. Learn more at ozarksfoodharvest.org and at facebook.com/ozarksfoodharvest.