FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 19, 2023
Media Contact:
Sharon Gallagher, 610-246-2541
sgallagher@sage-communications.com
THE SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PHILADELPHIA’S NUTRITION PROGRAM AND THE FUND FOR THE SCHOOL DISTRICT PARTNER WITH THE GIANT COMPANY TO BRING “GROCERIES FOR GOOD” PRODUCE STANDS TO 12 SCHOOLS IN COMMUNITIES WITH GREATEST NEEDS
District’s Eat Right Philly nutrition program has provided 21,000 pounds of produce to 2,150 families this school year with support from The Fund, Share Food Program and GIANT
PHILADELPHIA, Pa., Jan. 19, 2023 –Philadelphia School District Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr., Ed.D., Feltonville Intermediate School Principal Dana Singletary and the staff of the District’s Nutrition and Wellness program, “Eat Right Philly,” and representatives of The GIANT Company gathered today at the elementary school to help run a fresh produce stand for the students’ families. The stand is one of 12 District schools that has regular Groceries for Good stands, which are all made possible through a generous donation by GIANT and coordinated and managed through a partnership with The Fund for School District, Eat Right Philly, and local hunger-relief organization Share Food Program (Share).
Donations made to The Fund for the School District help to support and coordinate a contract with Share so they can procure the food, deliver, and staff the distributions with funding from GIANT’S Feeding School Kids program. Eat Right Philly coordinates the food distribution and liaises between the schools and partners involved to keep things running smoothly and direct the funding from GIANT to schools with the highest need.
“This is a great example of why collaboration and partnerships are so important to the School District of Philadelphia,” said Superintendent Watlington, Sr., Ed.D. “The GIANT Company’s generous support allows us to offer critical programs like Groceries for Good at our schools.”
Watlington, Sr., Ed.D. emphasized that inflation makes it even more difficult for families with limited incomes to shop for the groceries needed to make nutritious meals for their children. “Making sure families have access to fresh food through this program helps them bring healthy food home despite rising food costs and helps our students come to school healthier and more prepared to learn,” said the superintendent.
Earlier this month, GIANT announced the return of its Feeding School Kids initiative, now in its 3rd year, seeding the campaign with a $250,000 commitment. Funds raised benefit public school districts throughout the four states where the company operates stores. Support of the District’s produce stands is one part of their Feeding School Kids corporate social responsibility program.
With their contributions to the program and many of their customers rounding up their grocery purchases to the nearest dollar, GIANT has raised more than $4.8 million to date to help ensure no child goes hungry through Feeding School Kids.
“Studies have shown the correlation between good nutrition and success in school, which is why we launched our Feeding School Kids program in 2021 to address the issue of childhood hunger throughout our local public-school communities,” said Jessica Groves, community impact manager, The GIANT Company. “Today’s produce stand at Feltonville Intermediate gives us the opportunity to invite our team members to come to the school to volunteer and work with the Eat Right Philly and Share Food Program staff members.”
At today’s Groceries for Good, GIANT team member volunteers helping with the stand also gave 100 families GIANT gift cards and reusable bags for shopping.
Eat Right Philly Program Coordinator Teisha Cavanaugh said that in addition to the produce stand, their team provides nutrition education, recipes, and promotion of healthy eating strategies to complement the food distributions funded through GIANT. The District’s program is made possible through Pennsylvania Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Education (PA-SNAP) funding.
The Philadelphia School District’s Groceries for Good produce stands started in October 2022 and will continue to be held monthly at each of the 12 school sites; the stands will run through June 2023, with hopes of providing summer distributions as well.
Groceries for Good serves 12 Philadelphia public schools:
Felton Intermediate
Taggart
Blaine
Castor Gardens (formerly Woodrow Wilson)
Spring Garden
Martha Washington Academics Plus
Francis Scott Key
H.A. Brown Academics Plus
Solis-Cohen
Blankenburg
Gloria Casarez (formerly Sheridan)
Munoz-Marin
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About The GIANT Company
The GIANT Company believes that no matter where or how, when meals happen, families connect, and when families connect meaningfully, good happens. Guided by its brand platform, for Today’s Table®, the omni-channel retailer proudly serves millions of neighbors across Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and New Jersey. With more the 35,000 talented team members supporting more than 190 stores, 133 pharmacies, 107 fuel stations and over 175 online pickup hubs and grocery delivery service in hundreds of zip codes, The GIANT Company is changing the customer experience and connecting families for a better future. Founded in 1923 in Carlisle, Pa., The GIANT Company family of brands include GIANT, MARTIN’S GIANT Heirloom Market, GIANT Direct and MARTIN’S Direct. The GIANT Company is a company of Ahold Delhaize USA.
About The Fund for The School District
The Fund is an independent 501c3 not-for-profit organization that serves as a fiscal intermediary between the private sector and the Philadelphia public education system. It aligns investing partners – private foundations, corporations and businesses, community organizations and individual donors – with District leadership to achieve schools’ plans and strategies. The Fund: (1) champions strategic priorities, (2) manages donations and gifts and (3) facilitates partnerships. By coordinating these efforts, The Fund helps students in the District succeed and reach their full potential.
About The School District of Philadelphia
With more than 200,000 students and 19,000 staff, The School District of Philadelphia is the nation’s eighth-largest school district. Within the 342 district, charter and alternative education schools, students have access to 35 Advanced Placement courses, 40 career and technical programs and eight international baccalaureate programs. Its vision centers on providing excellent public-school education to children throughout the City of Philadelphia and ensuring that all children graduate from high school ready to succeed as fully engaged citizens of the world.
About Eat Right Philly
Funded by SNAP-Ed through the USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), and administered through the PA Department of Human Services (DHS), the District’s Eat Right Philly (ERP) nutrition education program has provided community-based nutrition education to students in grades K-12 since 1999. The District and six other community partners, including the Food Trust (TFT), Drexel University, the Agatston Urban Nutrition Initiative (AUNI), the Health Promotion Council (HPC), Einstein Medical Center, and the Vetri Community Partnership, offer nutrition education to all District schools.
About Share Food Program
Share Food Program is a leading hunger relief organization in the Greater Philadelphia region, working to eradicate food insecurity through food distribution, education, and advocacy. Through partnerships with nearly 800 schools and 400 community-based organizations and partner pantries, Share Food Program feeds hundreds of thousands of neighbors in need each month.