How a Canandaigua company helped feed the hungry
CANANDAIGUA, NY – Nearly two dozen Pactiv Evergreen workers from Guatemala had come to the area with nothing, so the company on North Street in the city got in touch with the Salvation Army of Canandaigua for help, which they received.
The willingness to help made such an impression that the Pactiv Evergreen employees knew they had to return the favor, and a partnership was born - and it's one expected to continue well into the future.
As part of the company’s first Give Back Month of Action last September (and they stretched their good deeds into October), their partnership paid off in a big, big way.
More than 500 employees collected 15,000 pounds of food items for the Salvation Army through several drives and in some cases, fun, in-house competitions to drive participation.
The parent company awarded the business units with the highest employee participation. From the company's food merchandising unit, the Canandaigua plant and Canandaigua Technology Center were given a check for $2,500 to donate to the Salvation Army. From the logistics business unit, the Canandaigua Regional Mixing Center was given a check to give to Canandaigua Churches in Action.
As a business, Pactiv's Canandaigua Plant Manager Terry Lafferty said it’s important to give back to the community in which it does business.
“This initiative gave us a chance to show just how important the community is to our continued success,” Lafferty said.
How does Pactiv's food donation help?
The food the company collected went to thousands of families in Canandaigua and surrounding community, according to Salvation Army Maj. Pamela Rhodes.
“Hungry people were fed,” Rhodes said. “There’s no better way than that kind of giving.”
Also, an impressive amount of pet food was donated, according to Maj. David Rhodes, after it was discovered during the food collection that this was a need in the community that was not being addressed.
“People will feed their animals before they feed themselves,” Pamela Rhodes said. “That’s tough to hear.”
Canandaigua's effort mirror the overall company's efforts toward giving back, especially when it comes to feeding the hungry, Lafferty said. The company as a whole supported 91 nonprofits while donating 3,348 hours of volunteer service and collecting 93,673 pounds of non-perishable food items.
What’s next for Pactiv and the Salvation Army of Canandaigua?
Well, it appears the partnership will continue, as both are brainstorming about further ways to help. In addition to collecting food, company employees purchased toys as part of an Angel Tree program last holiday season.
Through this partnership, Pactiv employees not only learned about the homelessness situation in Ontario County, but acted on it, helping to assemble homeless kits containing food and toiletry items.
The Salvation Army is thankful for Pactiv’s assistance, David Rhodes said.
“They went above and beyond, and provided much needed food to those in our community who are struggling to make ends meet,” he said.
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Pactiv Evergreen, Salvation Army of Canandaigua team up to help hungry
