Spirit of Giving Food Drive Raises Over 12,000 Pounds

From November 28th to December 14th, Dole Packaged Foods and FOOD Share of Ventura County collaborated on their first inaugural Spirit of Giving school food drive to empower local students to give back to those less fortunate than themselves.  The food drive raised 12,700 pounds of food to help feed the 1 in 6 Ventura County residents who is still food insecure.   

Over 13 schools across Ventura County participated, and the winning elementary, middle, and high schools were honored in a ceremony held at the Dole Packaged Foods headquarters in Westlake Village on Friday December 16th.  The Spirit of Giving food drive commemorated and captured the essence of Dole’s “Spirit of Hawaii” float for the 128th annual Tournament of Roses Parade, and the awards ceremony was held in conjunction with Dole’s employee float decorating day.  Winning elementary schools were awarded Captain Planet Foundation Learning Gardens, while the top-performing middle and elementary schools received $1,000 in funding for their science programs.  All winners returned to their campuses with unique trophies which are sure to be displayed proudly for the year ahead.   

“Dole Packaged Foods was proud to partner with FOOD Share and the Captain Planet Foundation for the Spirit of Giving 2016 Ventura County Food Drive,” said Barbara Vass, Sr. Director of Marketing, Dole Packaged Foods.  “As a provider of healthy food products that are affordable to all, we’re uniquely positioned to fight hunger in Ventura County, and we share the commitment of both organizations to enhancing student knowledge of nutrition and the environment.  We’re very excited about the enthusiastic participation and results of this food drive!”

The winning schools were based on total pounds of food collected.  Dos Caminos Elementary, Santa Rosa School, Tierra Linda School, San Cayetano Elementary, Piru Elementary, Olivelands, and Briggs Elementary received top honors in the K-8 category, with Las Colinas School and Fillmore High School taking home the awards in the middle and high school categories.

“FOOD Share is so grateful for the ongoing and dedicated support of our Ventura County schools,” said Bonnie Atmore, President & CEO of FOOD Share of Ventura County.  “We are so excited to be able to Thank and honor them through this powerful collaboration with Dole Packaged Foods and the Captain Planet Foundation.  Some of the schools that raised the most food are in the most food insecure areas of our county.  That just goes to show you how impactful the Spirit of Giving food drive has been and how passionate our friends and neighbors are about solving hunger in our communities.”