Be A Sweetheart - Feed the Hungry

Date: 14 Feb 2010 Location: Mast General Store

Valentine’s Day is a time to remember someone special with cards and gifts. We often celebrate by enjoying a meal together.  This year there are many people just hoping to have a meal.  To raise awareness for hunger in East Tennessee, Mast General Store is partnering with Second Harvest Food Bank for its sixth annual Be a Sweetheart…Help the Hungry event February 13th and 14th.

Hunger is a major force in east Tennessee with one in six Tennesseans going hungry.  Second Harvest distributes food to roughly 155,000 hungry people every month through a network of Partner Agencies throughout East Tennessee.  “We are so grateful to the Mast General Store and all those who will be supporting Second Harvest Food Bank during the Be A Sweetheart event, said Elaine Streno, executive director of Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. 

Fred Martin, vice president of the Mast General Store, commented, “Our Be a Sweetheart…Feed the Hungry event has helped provide food to the food banks serving our local communities at a time when donations are needed.  After the holidays, donations tend to wane, and in these challenging economic times, we need to help our neighbors whenever we can.”

This year Mast Store will contribute $1 for each pound of candy purchased on February 13th and 14th. “Second Harvest Food Bank serves nearly 500 agencies in 18 East Tennessee Counties, and we estimate that we are currently only reaching about 1/3rd of the people living in hunger in our community.  We are excited about this partnership,” said Streno. “It is a creative way to raise awareness of Second Harvest and the work it does in the community, and it’s always good when you can give a gift to someone you love and have it help in other ways, too.”

For more information on how you can “Be a Sweetheart,” call Second Harvest Food Bank at 865-521-0000, visit their website at http://www.secondharvestknox.com, or the Mast Store in Downtown Knoxville at 865-546-1336.

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