Giant Food and Washington Capitals Donate Turkeys to Capital Area Food Bank

Giant Food of Landover, Md. has donated 2,000 fresh turkeys to the Capital Area Food Bank, providing the centerpiece of Thanksgiving meals for local families and community members in need during the holidays. 

The donation, a collaboration between Giant and its partner, the National Hockey League’s Washington Capitals, has kicked off a three-week, region-wide food drive held at all 167 Giant stores that will benefit Giant’s five Feeding America food bank partners, including the Capital Area Food Bank. The drive will take place from Nov. 18 to Dec. 8 and customers can donate at their local stores in a variety of ways: purchase a Nature’s Promise Box that will be donated directly to the Capital Area Food Bank; purchase and donate one of the “healthy most -wanted items” featured in stores; bring and/or purchase any non-perishable food items and place in store collection bins at the front of stores; or attend the Capitals vs. Columbus Blue Jackets game on Nov. 20 at Verizon Center, where the Caps Care Food Drive presented by Giant will be held. 

“As a grocery store, we continually recognize the important role we can play in the fight against hunger,” says Gordon Reid, president for Giant Food of Landover, Md. “Through partnerships such as the ones with Monumental Sports & Entertainment, we are able to help the Capital Area Food Bank push the needle on helping those who are facing food insecurity rest a little easier this holiday season.”

In August, Giant signed on as Monumental Sports & Entertainment’s Legacy Partner, becoming the exclusive grocery partner of the Washington Capitals, Mystics, Wizards and the Verizon Center. The partnership with Giant helps support and develop programs that further Giant’s local community objectives that are a cornerstone of Giant’s operation, including Giant’s hunger initiatives.

“The Capitals are proud to partner with Giant to help local families,” says Jim Van Stone, president, business operations at Monumental Sports & Entertainment. “We encourage our fans to take part in the initiative by donating items at Giant stores as well as during our November 20 game. Together we can help make a difference across the region in honor of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday.”

Giant has been a long-time sponsor of the Capital Area Food Bank, working together for 36 years to support the Food Bank’s mission to alleviate hunger in the Greater Washington, D.C. area. Earlier this month, Giant presented the Capital Area Food Bank a $50,000 donation, which stemmed from in-store campaigns and fundraising during this summer’s 24th Annual Barbecue Battle. In 2016, Giant also committed to serving as the food bank’s inaugural Retailer for Wellness, a program established in early 2016 to help the food bank provide a balanced offering of food by sorting out leftover holiday candy, cakes, and pies while increasing donations of lean proteins, whole grains, and other foods that contribute to wellness. 

“We’re seeing over and over again that access to good food makes the difference to people’s health and to their lives”, says Nancy E. Roman, president and CEO of the Capital Area Food Bank. “Our work with retailers is at the core of our ability to make that good food accessible to people who need it, and Giant has been just an unbelievable partner. We’re so glad to be receiving this protein, and for the many ways that Giant supports our community.”

In addition to the Capital Area Food Bank, the Maryland Food Bank, the Blue Ridge Area Food Bank, the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank and the Food Bank of Delaware will all receive 1,000 turkeys, respectively. Since 2011, Giant has donated a total of 28,750 turkeys to local Feeding America food banks including the Capital Area Food Bank, to help alleviate hunger and make celebrating the holidays possible for families in the Mid-Atlantic region.