The Buffalo Bills Women's Association comprised of Bills player and staff wives, fiancées and girlfriends did some early Thanksgiving food shopping for the Food Bank of Western New York on November 12th. As part of their 6th annual Touchdown Turkeys program, the ladies donation will go a long way in assisting the Food Bank in their efforts to feed over 96,000 less fortunate Western New Yorkers who, each month, turn to soup kitchens, food pantries and other emergency food providers for assistance.
In addition to the turkeys and hams that the ladies purchased at Tops Friendly Markets in Orchard Park, the ladies also concentrated on buying items for babies.
"We love the Food Bank and being able to help our community, especially this year when the demand is so high and there is such a need for donations," said Laura Denney, chairperson of the Bills Women's Association and wife of Bills defensive end Ryan Denney. "The food bank has a particular need for diapers and formula – which is something that hits so close to home since I have a baby and know how expensive they are."
"We would like to sincerely thank the Buffalo Bills Women's Association for another successful Touchdown Turkeys run," said Marylou Borowiak, Food Bank of WNY president & CEO. "What many people don't realize is that we don't just need turkeys, fruits and vegetables but we need baby products as well."
The community partnership that encompassed the event was very apparent. Tops gave the Bills Women's Association their own special check-out lanes, supplied free refreshments for the shoppers and provided a generous discount on all of the food items. The food was all transported directly to the Food Bank by bus courtesy of First Student Bus Rental. Volunteers at the Food Bank were on hand to unload the bus and help store the food accordingly.
Denney and June Schobel, wife of Bills defensive end Aaron Schobel, were also given a tour of the Food Bank facility. Borowiak happily took the time to explain how their Food Bank operation worked and how they helped the less fortunate.
Borowiak said, "Here at the Food Banks we try to make people aware that hunger is a problem 365 days a year and not just around the holidays. We are so happy to have the support of the Bills Women's Association. The generosity of Western New Yorkers who support the Food Bank by donating goes a long way toward our mission."
The Food Bank of WNY, founded in 1979, obtains food and support from public and private sources and efficiently redistributes these resources to affiliated charitable providers such as soup kitchens, pantries and shelters. It distributes more than one million pounds of food each month to more than 96,000 individuals (39 percent of whom are children and 11 percent of whom are seniors) through some 400 member agencies in Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie and Niagara counties. For more information, visit www.foodbankwny.org.
