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Hunger Action Month fundraiser will provide weekend meals for 467 kids in southwest Missouri

SPRINGFIELD, Mo.— Community members and businesses across the Ozarks came together this weekend to provide 467 at-risk kids with nutritious meals every weekend of the school year.

Ozarks Food Harvest and iHeartMedia’s 20th annual Hungerthon wrapped up this morning, collecting $140,168 for The Food Bank’s Weekend Backpack Program. The initiative provides more than 1,600 food insecure children with food to take home every Friday throughout the entire school year. One in five children in southwest Missouri struggle with hunger, especially on the weekends when school meals aren’t available.

“We are so thankful for the partnership we have had with Kevin and Liz for the past 20 years,” said Bart Brown, Ozarks Food Harvest’s president/CEO. “It’s truly a blessing to see the community come together to support food insecure children.”

Kevin Howard and Liz Delany from 105.9 KGBX hosted the radio-thon, which began at 6 a.m. Friday and ended at 10 a.m. today outside the Historic Tower Theater in Springfield. Those involved spent 30 hours this weekend raising funds for the Weekend Backpack Program.

“It always feels great after Hungerthon to know that we, along with listeners of KGBX and Ozarks Food Harvest, have made a big difference in the Ozarks,” said Kevin Howard of The Kevin and Liz Show. “We now know that 467 kids that were on the waiting list are going to be taken care of in the coming school year.”

Backpacks were matched by individuals, businesses and foundations including MassMutual, Heart of America Beverage Company, The Musgrave Foundation, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield, CoxHealth, Harter House, Yahweh’s Place at Cedarville, Associated Electric Cooperative, Inc., Peck Insurance & Financial Services, Inc. and Ron & Janice Penney. Several local businesses including Expedia and Jersey Mike’s Subs served as event sponsors.

If community members were unable to participate in Hungerthon, pledges can still be made securely online at ozarksfoodharvest.org/donate, where funds can be designated to the Weekend Backpack Program. For a donation of $300, or $25 monthly, a child will receive meals every weekend for an entire school year.

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About Ozarks Food Harvest — The Food Bank
Ozarks Food Harvest is the Feeding America food bank for southwest Missouri, providing food to 270 organizations across 28 Ozarks counties serving 261,000 unduplicated individuals. The Food Bank provides more than 17 million meals annually. Learn more at ozarksfoodharvest.org, facebook.com/ozarksfoodharvest or twitter.com/ozksfoodharvest.