The Chattanooga Area Food Bank has been selected to receive a $6,000 grant as part of the Restaurant Community Grants program from the Darden Restaurants Foundation, Inc., the charitable arm of Darden Restaurants. The grants program, now in its third year, empowers each restaurant in the Darden family of brands to help award a $1,000 grant to support local community programs. The donation will enable the CAFB’s project to continue to operate the Senior Grocery program which provides 150 at-risk seniors with fresh, nutritious food on a monthly basis.
Darden’s Red Lobster, Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse, Bahama Breeze, Seasons 52, The Capital Grille, Eddie V’s and Yard House brands participated in the program. Many restaurants and brands worked together to award one nonprofit organization with a larger grant and make a greater impact in their community. Nonprofits receiving grants support one of Darden’s three key focus areas: education, preservation of natural resources and hunger relief.
Chattanooga Area Food Bank President, Maeghan Jones, says the Darden Restaurant group is one of many community partners doing their part to fight hunger in this region. “I applaud Darden Restaurant Inc. and our local Red Lobsters, Olive Gardens and Longhorn Steakhouses for stepping up to the challenge of feeding our hungry neighbors. They worked together to make a big impact for our area seniors and they serve as an example of what businesses are capable of when they work together.” The Darden Restaurants also donate prepared food to the Chattanooga Area Food Bank throughout the year.
“We strive to make a positive impact in all the communities our restaurants serve,” said Gene Lee, Darden’s president and chief operating officer. “Our employees are incredibly passionate about getting directly involved in their local communities, and our Restaurant Community Grants program enables each of our restaurant teams to make a difference right in their own backyard.”
CAFB’s Senior Grocery program provides supplemental food to seniors through monthly mobile distributions in collaboration with partner agencies. The monthly food deliveries provide approximately 60 pounds of fresh and non-perishable food through a “client-choice” distribution model that allows seniors to personally select the nutritious foods that meet their specific dietary needs and fall within USDA recommendations.
For more information about the Darden Foundation, visit
www.dardenfoundation.com. For additional information on the Chattanooga Area Food Bank please visit
www.chattfoodbank.org.