Bank of North Georgia had tremendous success in hosting its third annual ‘Back to School Peanut Butter and Jelly Food Drive’ to benefit 27 local food banks near its 43 offices in metro Atlanta.
The timing was perfect with the busy school year kicking off at most area schools in early August. In total, the bank collected 3,837 jars at 5,787 pounds, which is almost three tons of PB&J. That is enough to make more than 46,297 sandwiches for children in metro Atlanta (with approximately two ounces of PB&J spread on each sandwich)! Creamy peanut butter was the clear winner over crunchy and the bank received more grape jelly than any other flavor.
“Our team members are passionate about making a difference in the local communities we serve. In 2008, we began hosting a food drive because we learned that food pantry shelves are typically depleted in the summer months and there is a tremendous need for nutritious food for children as they prepare to go back to school,” said Don Howard, Chairman, President and CEO of Bank of North Georgia.
“Since the program was created three years ago, Bank of North Georgia has collected more than six and a half tons of PB&J. We are very pleased with the outpouring of support expressed by our customers, team members and friends,” he added.
The bank’s Roswell Branch team collected the most PB&J with a total of 934 jars. The team also received $1,000 worth of PB&J from customer and community partner, Chrysalis Experiential Academy. Their donation was matched by Publix for a total of $2,000 worth of PB&J.
The East Covington branch collected the most PB&J by weight at 1,115 pounds. They had a lot of help from EMS students at DeKalb Tech who collected PB&J to benefit the drive. According to Branch Manager Teri Goodman, “We were expecting 300 pounds of peanut butter and jelly and were completely blown away when they arrived in their student ambulance with 1,076 pounds!”
The bank held a contest for their team members to guess the total number of PB&J jars collected and the total weight in pounds. Two lucky team members, Anila Roy, Teller at Woodstock, and Karen Pilcher, Business Banker at Roswell, won a PB&J Prize Basket.
Local Food Bank Partners: Food Banks/Pantries were selected based on their proximity to Bank of North Georgia’s bank offices. Partners include Agape Community Center (Atlanta), Atlanta Union Mission (Atlanta), Bowdon Area United Christian Ministries (Bowdon), Boys and Girls Club of Carroll County (Carrollton), Breaking Down Walls Ministry (Lilburn), Bremen Food and Clothing (Bremen), Buchanan Health Department (Buchanan), Camp and Christian Aid Society (Austell), Carroll County Soup Kitchen (Carrollton), Community Action Center (Atlanta), Community Assistance Resources & Emergency Services (CARES, Inc. – Jasper), Community Food Pantry (Covington), Fayette Samaritans (Fayetteville), Heirway Christian Ministries, Inc. (Villa Rica), Helping Hands of Paulding, Inc. (Dallas), Helping in His Name Ministries (Stockbridge and McDonough), MUST Ministries (Marietta), MUST Ministries (Canton), Norcross Cooperative Ministry (Norcross), North Fulton Community Charities (Roswell), North Gwinnett Co-op (Buford), Rockdale Emergency Relief (Conyers), Salvation Army (Canton), Salvation Army Carrollton), Salvation Army (Covington), The Center for Family Resources (Marietta), The Place of Forsyth (Cumming), The Real Life Crisis Center (Tyrone), Tucker Food Pantry (Tucker).
BNG held the three week ‘Back to School PB&J Food Drive’ from July 12 to 31. “Our goal was to help children get off to a great start this school year by doing our part in providing some essential nutrition in their lunch boxes,” Howard explained.
