Throughout the year, the Utah Food Bank receives donations from hundreds of food and fund drives hosted by various organizations, and by individuals who want to give back to the community. Because of the generosity of these businesses and individuals, the Utah Food Bank is able purchase food to distribute to pantries throughout Utah and even Mobile Pantry Trucks, which bring lots of fresh food to areas under served by traditional food pantries.

Since 2011, Les Olson Company has been hosting food and fund drives to help support the Utah Food Bank, and has been the official sponsor of the Summer Business Food and Fund Drive for several years. We also send volunteers to hand out food to elementary school students and their families at one of their Mobile Pantry trucks on a monthly basis. The Summer Food and Fund drive is a great time for our company and employees to show their generosity by donating food, money, and time by by volunteering at the Utah Food Bank Warehouse, Mobile Pantry, and delivering food boxes to senior citizens.

Our Las Vegas team has also been a long-time supporter of Three Square Food Bank in Las Vegas, in order to keep their donations local to Nevada. Our amazing employees and their families donated over 20,000 food items, $27,000 dollars, and volunteered a collective 179 hours. Did you know that food pantries can take a dollar that is donated, and turn it into $7.34 of food and services for those in need? Through the buying power of food pantries that means nearly $200,000 worth of food was purchased through the cash donations made by Les Olson Company Employees this summer.

This was a great experience for us to see and to interact with many kids and their families who benefit from Utah Food Bank and Three Square’s efforts. We at Les Olson Company believe that no kid should feel unsure about where their next meal will come from. We are proud to support the Utah Food Bank and Three Square’s activities, and encourage any business or individual to donate and give a helping hand, so together we can have a bigger impact in our community.

Representatives from Les Olson Company sat down with KUTV’s Holly Menino to discuss our involvement with Utah Food Bank’s Summer Business Food and Fund Drive. This is our 5th-annual office food drive, and we have been the official sponsor for the past 3 years. Our employees have made some incredibly generous donations to help make sure kids stay fed this summer, and we encourage other businesses to get involved by hosting their own office food drives.

This is Les Olson Company’s fourth year as the official sponsor for Utah Food Bank‘s 2016 Summer Business Food & Fund Drive. Each year, Les Olson Company holds a company-wide food & fund drive, encouraging employees to donate in any way they can. Employees and their families participate by volunteering at Utah Food Bank, as well as donating food and money. During the summer months, kids that rely on school meal programs often find themselves going hungry. This comes at a time when Utah Food Bank sees a decrease in donations. This year, as part of our sponsorship, Les Olson Company ran a series of television and web ads encouraging others in our community to get involved in fighting childhood hunger. Les Olson Company employees worked together to raise $32,410 dollars, 2,626 food items, and volunteered for a combined total of 448 hours.

Les Olson Company has been involved with Utah Food Bank since 2011, when we held our first company-wide food drive in support of their Summer Business Food and Fund Drive. Since then, Les Olson Company has become the official sponsor of that initiative.

The food drive is a great time for our company as we see the generosity of our employees and others in the community, but we wanted to be involved during other times of the year as well. This year, we agreed to provide volunteers for one of Utah Food Bank’s Mobile Pantries each month.

We love the Mobile Pantry because it brings food directly to people in high-need areas. Last year, Utah Food Bank’s Mobile Pantries served more than 224,000 people throughout the state; bringing fresh food to areas with the most need. Through the generosity of businesses and individuals, Utah Food Bank is able to purchase their Mobile Pantry trucks; adding more to their fleet each year and reaching more people, but they can’t run them without volunteers.

Les Olson Company sends employees to volunteer each month at the Franklin Elementary Mobile Pantry. We’ve found it to be an extremely enriching experience to interact directly with those who benefit from Utah Food Bank’s efforts. We initially became involved with the food bank when we learned that 1 in 5 Utah kids are unsure where their next meal will come from.

When you volunteer at their Mobile Pantry, you see nutritious food go directly to those very kids. Utah Food Bank has several Mobile Pantries that serve many locations throughout Utah, and they are always in need of volunteers to help pass out food. We highly recommend this great volunteer opportunity to any business or individual looking to make an impact in their community.

We’re also looking forward to this year’s Summer Business Food and Fund Drive, starting June 1.

Les Olson Company was recognized as the Utah Food Bank “Group of the Year” at their “Open Hands, Helping Hands” Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon. We were recognized for our work with Utah Food Bank’s Mobile Pantry. Each month, Les Olson Company sends a volunteer group to help run the Mobile Pantry at Franklin Elementary School. The Mobile Pantry helps get food into the hands of kids and their families who are struggling with food insecurity.

Les Olson Company employees volunteer Monthly at Utah Food Bank’s Mobile Pantries. Mobile Pantries provide additional support to individuals facing hunger with culturally-suitable staples, including as much fresh food as possible, in communities that are under-served by traditional brick-and-mortar pantries. Areas may be under-served because there is no local pantry, the local pantry is too small to store enough food to support the number of people in need, or the pantry lacks enough refrigeration to provide adequate fresh foods. Mobile pantries also bring fresh food to areas where clients lack sufficient transportation to access the nearest food pantry. Last year, Utah Food Bank served more than 224,000 individuals throughout the state through their mobile pantries.