SALISBURY, Md. — Perdue Farms, through its Franklin P. and Arthur W. Perdue Foundation, has awarded a $10,000 grant to Blue Ridge Area Food Bank to help fund its Good Food School Markets during the 2021-2022 school year. The donation is part of Perdue’s “Delivering Hope to Our Neighbors®” initiative focused on improving quality of life and building strong communities.
“The Good Food School Market is a privately funded child nutrition program that brings fresh produce and shelf-stable foods into high schools for distribution to students and families in need and seeks to reduce the stigma of visiting a food pantry,” said Blue Ridge Area Food Bank CEO Michael McKee. “We thank the Franklin P. and Arthur W. Perdue Foundation in renewing its generous support and sole/lead sponsorship of two Good Food School Markets locations – Harrisonburg High School in Harrisonburg City, Va., and Broadway High School in Broadway, Va.”
The funds will be used to maintain charitable food assistance services for about 175 students and families a month at Harrisonburg High and 215 a month at Broadway High.
“These are very diverse school districts with large populations of food-insecure households, many of whom do not know about the resources available to them, or who are reluctant to access what is available,” McKee said. “Students and staff have been an important part of our team in design, promotion and food distribution ensuring long-term success and reducing the stigma for peers in need of help.”
During the last two decades, Perdue has donated 2,780,845 pounds of protein — the equivalent of more than 2.3 million meals — and $211,500 in financial support to Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.
“School pantries provide much-needed support to families with young children,” said Kim Nechay, executive director of the Perdue Foundation. “This assures that the food goes straight to the kids to support them over the weekends, especially when school breakfast and lunch are not provided. We are honored to be able to continue to support these efforts of the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank.”
