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There was a buzz in the air at the Food Bank of the Southern Tier warehouse on September 26. Over 100 employees from local companies gathered to participate in the 2024 Leader of the Pack Corporate Challenge. Also, a special thank you to this year’s sponsor, Wegmans.

Challenges like this are more important than ever because hunger is everywhere in our community. From schools to churches and maybe even the house down the street. The reality is that in our community, today, 1 in 7 people and 1 in 5 children are at risk of food insecurity.

Participating teams: Cameron Manufacturing and Design, Chemung Canal Trust Company, Corning Incorporated, Dandy, Erie Insurance, Food Bank of the Southern Tier, MMB + Co, Tioga Downs, Wegmans “Blue”, Wegmans “Red”, and Williams Auto

Each team raced against the clock and each other to pack bags of nourishing food for the BackPack program. Each of the bags included a combination of protein, grains, fruit, and vegetable. THE RESULT: in less than one hour, the teams packed 5,280 packs of food for the Food Bank’s BackPack program.

A special congrats to the first-place team, Wegmans “Blue”! The second-place team Williams Auto! The third-place team Wegmans “Red”! And to all the participating teams and companies. Check out the video in this post to see the event in action.

Across the Food Bank’s six-county service area, last year 2,673 children last year relied on the BackPack program. This program supports kids through weekends and school breaks. In total last year 78,680 packs of food were distributed.

For more on the BackPack program and other programs from the Food Bank of the Southern Tier, click here.