Web Producer: Janice Yu, Taylor Higgins

 

TUCSON (KGUN9-TV) - Tucson will receive $50,000 in grants as a result of the communities involvement in Walmart's Fighting Hunger Together Fall initiative.

 

During the initiative, an Arizona resident was randomly selected to win a "Golden Spark" award and the resident chose Tucson to receive the grant money. The grant will help the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona start a backpack program that will benefit local youth. 

 

"We are proud of our local community for participating in Walmart's Golden Spark promotion. Their thoughtfulness has allowed us the opportunity to receive this grant today," said Jack Parris, public relations manager at the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona. "Through this funding, we will be able to provide backpacks filled with food to children in our community when school meals are not available."

 

The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona backpack program provides children with easy to prepare foods to take home during weekends or holiday vacation, when other resources such as free or reduced school lunches are not available. 

 

The current child food insecurity rate in Pima County is 26.2 percent, which represents 57,770 children, according to Feeding America. The grant will be able to provide 150 children in Tucson and Pima County with more than 17,000 meals for the next three years. The backpack program will be implemented with the Santa Cruz School District. 

 

The Fighting Hunger Together fall initiative is a part of Walmart Foundation's $2 billion commitment through 2015 to fight hunger in the U.S. 

 

"We are excited by the energy and engagement of our associates and customers in fighting hunger together. The backpack programs started or expanded across the U.S. as a result of this initiative will help to provide an estimated two million weekend meals to children nationwide," said Sylvia Mathews Burwell, president of the Walmart Foundation.