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Friday, Nov. 06, 2009

Walmart gives new $85,000 refrigerated truck to local food bank

The 24-foot refrigerated truck rolled into the Middle Georgia Community Food Bank on Thursday afternoon, still, as one food bank board member put it, with “that new car smell.”

The $85,000 Freightliner is one of 35 new trucks donated to food banks across the country by the Walmart Foundation.

Ronald Raleigh, executive director of the Middle Georgia Community Food Bank, said he will add the truck to the food bank’s existing fleet of four as soon as possible.

“It will enable us to pick up another driver and to pick up more at Walmart stores,” Raleigh said.

The truck also gives the food bank a second 24-footer needed to make deliveries to families.

“It will take some of the stress off my old workhouse that’s been pulling the load,” said Raleigh.

Middle Georgia Community Food Bank serves 24 Middle Georgia counties and a network of 270 agencies.

The food bank has switched all of its trucks to refrigerated vehicles as the majority of items donated to the agency have moved into perishable goods such as dairy, produce, meats and frozen vegetables, Raleigh said.

Area Walmart stores support Middle Georgia Community Food Bank with regular donations of food, paper products and “pullback” items, said Jimmy Clark, market manager for more than 14 midstate Walmart stores.

“They’re a great partner to us,” Clark said. “This is the only truck delivered in the state of Georgia. We’re proud to have it in our area.”

The donation is part of “Walmart Giving Back,” a holiday giving initiative that will provide $32 million in monetary and in-kind donations to charitable organizations across the country, according to a Walmart news release.

“In this economy, families and seniors across the country who rely on food banks have been hit especially hard,” Margaret McKenna, president of the Walmart Foundation, said in a news release. “Our business and our charitable giving are united in the commitment to eradicate hunger in America.”

Since the recession began, demand in the 24 counties served by the Middle Georgia Community Food Bank has increased 20 percent, Raleigh said.

To contact writer Rodney Manley, call 744-4623.