Thanks to you, thousands of families will go to bed with full stomachs tonight. On Tuesday, April 21st, our community came together in a big way to help feed our neighbors in need. On that day, the incredible team at WESH 2 News hosted a telethon to help spread the word about the impact of the coronavirus on our community and to help raise funds to put food on the tables for those who have been impacted. The telethon featured stories of the work being done to serve our community and those individuals who have stepped up to help during this crisis. In addition to live shots from Second Harvest’s warehouse and out at a community distribution, the team also hosted a prime time special at 8pm. Local and national celebrities got in to the action by sending in their messages to support the food bank and our neighbors in need. The team at WESH set an ambitious goal of raising $1 million dollars in just 24 hours.
Because of you, that goal was exceeded, raising more than $1.1 million dollars! These funds will help to cover the costs of food distributions in the community for about two weeks. Since the start of the pandemic, Second Harvest has increased its distribution to 300,000 meals a day – more than doubled pre-pandemic numbers.
The owners of AmeriFactors kicked off the day with a generous offer to match every dollar raised up to $100,000. A number of significant donations came in throughout the day, including $100,000 donation from Concord Rents as well as $10,000 from a foundation that has asked to remain anonymous.
The most powerful part of the day was watching our community step up to the challenge. Over 7,600 people made donations to Second Harvest that day, unlocking the AmeriFactors match and exceeding the campaign goal. It is humbling to watch so many generous individuals and companies come forward to help community members who they have never met, many of whom are asking for help for the first time.
A special shout out to the incredible team from WESH 2 for all of their efforts leading up to and during the telethon, especially Marcie Golgoski, a former Dave Pearlman “Spirit of Volunteerism” award winner, who spearheaded the effort.
The funds raised are already being put to work to serve our community. The money will help with things such as acquiring food, covering the cost of drivers and trucks to distribute the food, and other distribution related expenses. Now, more than ever, our community needed your help. Thanks to you, our community members will get the support that they need.
Stories made possible by you.
Our community is helping provide more food to more people.
