On December 18, 2014

Vermont Foodbank holds Pack to Give Back event in Rutland

RUTLAND — Monday, Dec. 15, the Vermont Foodbank held its first event at its new Park Street location in Rutland. Pack to Give Back brought together business leaders, school children, elected officials, and concerned citizens to pack holiday food boxes for 500 Rutland area residents.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to be expanding into Rutland,” said John Sayles, CEO of the Vermont Foodbank. “The need in Rutland is great and the Foodbank is here to learn and work with our partners and the community to help where we can.”

Pack to Give Back was presented by Vermont Country Store with support from Same Sun of Vermont. “Vermont Country Store has been a longtime supporter of the Foodbank and we are excited to work more closely with the organization as they expand services within the Rutland community,” said Anne Warrell, community relations and communications manager at Vermont Country Store.

Boxes were filled with holiday meal staples, including sweet potatoes courtesy of RAFFL—the Rutland Area Food and Farm Link.

“RAFFL is very happy to participate in the Pack to Give Back event,” said Tara Kelly, executive director of the Rutland Area Farm and Food Link. “We see this as a perfect opportunity to distribute the 2,000 pounds of sweet potatoes that Laughing Child Farm in Pawlet donated to our Glean Team program.  We are happy to support this special effort to get high quality foods to people in need this season.”

Thanks to the work of eight network partners in the region, boxes will be distributed to area families in need. For families in search of a holiday meal, Pack to Give Back boxes can be found at these participating agencies: BROC, Our Neighbors Table, Hubbardton-Castleton Food Shelf, Rutland Community Cupboard, Fair Haven Concerned, Rutland City Rescue Mission, and Pittsford Food Shelf.

Vermont Foodbank is the state’s largest hunger-relief organization, serving Vermont through a network of 270 food shelves, meal sites, shelters, senior centers and youth programs. In FY2014, the Vermont Foodbank distributed nearly 9 million pounds of food to 153,100 Vermonters.  The Vermont Foodbank, a member of Feeding America, is nationally recognized as one of the most effective and efficient nonprofits and food banks in the nation. Learn more at www.charitynavigator.org. 

Do you want to submit feedback to the editor?

Send Us An Email!

Related Posts

Three new homes at the Vistas at Sunrise break ground

October 2, 2024
The Vistas at Sunrise recently broke ground on the final phase of the Vistas including three four-bedroom, 4,000 square foot homes in Sunrise Village in Killington. These homes will complete the subdivision, marking a significant milestone for the community.  The first house of this final phase of construction is expected to be complete during next…

Vt Agency of Education releases 2023-24 statewide assessment results, gaps remain

October 2, 2024
The Vermont Agency of Education released the preliminary 2023-24 Vermont Comprehensive Assessment Program (CEAP) results on Friday, Sept. 27. The assessment is administered annually in the spring to students in grades 3-9, and 11. The assessment measures students’ mastery of the Common Core State Standards in English language arts (ELA), mathematics, and the Next Generation…

Killington’s donated snow cat enhances Vermont Tech students opportunities 

October 2, 2024
By Brooke Geery, Killington Resort At the end of last season, Killington Resort donated one of its well-used snow cats to Vermont Technical College (VTC) in Randolph. The gift was the idea of Vehicle Maintenance Manager Halley Riley-Elliot, who graduated from the VTC program herself in 2021. As the equipment had fulfilled its usefulness for…

Bridgewater declines assistance

October 2, 2024
By Brett Yates Regional planners want to help a trio of Windsor County municipalities win federal funds for projects that would prevent flood damage during future storms. But, so far, the town of Bridgewater isn’t interested. A new program called the Resilience Initiative for Vermont Empowerment and Recovery (RIVER) aims to protect communities that sit…