More than one in four children in Oklahoma are not getting the food they need, according to the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma.
The Tulsa United Way Area will host a Compassionate Food and Blood Drive Day from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, June 24 at 21 locations across six counties to benefit the East Oklahoma Community Food Bank and other United Way partner agencies.
In Sand Springs, food donations will benefit Sand Springs Community Services, 114 W. Fourth St., where donations will be collected.
The most necessary foods are canned fruits and vegetables, peanut butter, canned protein, rice and pasta.
“The trauma and challenges of living through a pandemic have affected everyone, but especially the most vulnerable in our community,” said Alison Anthony, president and CEO of Tulsa Area United Way.
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“We have averted a major hunger crisis in recent years through the work of food banks and pantries, donors, and a robust federal financial response, but with the end of pandemic-related financial assistance, plus high inflation, it’s no surprise that we’re once again seeing more and more Oklahomans asking for food aid.
“Our last two days of food and blood drives in 2020 and 2021 generated over 100,000 pounds of food and over 350 pints of blood. Our goal in 2022 is 50,000 pounds of food and 200 pints of blood,” Anthony said. “Our nonprofits alone cannot eradicate hunger. It takes a public and private partnership to recover strongly from the pandemic.
“Our community is among the most generous in the country, and we hope they will come forward and turn compassion into action on June 24.”
No blood drives will take place in Sand Springs on June 24, but to register to donate blood through the Oklahoma Blood Institute or the American Red Cross as part of the event, go online at tauw .org/blooddrive.
