Dollar General : Serving Others in Fort Wayne, Indiana

Dollar General, Kellogg Company and Unilever partner to provide more than $655,000 in corporate funding and products


Dollar General, Kellogg Company and Unilever recently joined forces to extend Dollar General's mission of Serving Others in the Fort Wayne, Indiana community by providing $50,000 in funding to two local schools and more than $655,000 in financial support, food and product to the Community Harvest Food Bank.

'When we heard from our customers and neighbors in the Fort Wayne community about the hardships they were facing due to the impact of the pandemic, we wanted to help,' said Denine Torr, Dollar General's senior director of community initiatives. 'We learned about the increased requests for food assistance and heard stories about the challenges families are facing due to their children's education being disrupted. With our friends at Kellogg and Unilever, we decided to offer support. Together, we are funding two local schools and a mobile food distribution, as well as providing additional products for the food bank and the backpack feeding program and offering financial support for the food bank's continued operations in the community. This is more than just a donation-we want the community to know we care.'

Dollar General also hosted a community event at store #17321 in Fort Wayne where more than 645 family were served and 36,800 pounds of food were distributed to residents in need. As part of the Fort Wayne community event on Tuesday, September 22, representatives from each organization presented monetary and product donations to the Community Harvest Food Bank to support the overall goal of nourishing families and meeting fundamental needs for education, including food, essential supplies and resources.

Additional funding of $25,000 each was provided to Abbett Elementary and Irwin Elementary. The joint donation supports bothKellogg's Better Daysglobal commitment to help end hunger and Unilever'sUnited for Fort Wayneinitiative that serves and empowers the nation's front line aid organizations and support systems.

'It just doesn't get any better than this,' said Carmen Cumberland, Community Harvest Food Bank's executive president. 'Dollar General, Kellogg, and Unilever are truly invested in our community with this $655,000 donation of food and funds. There have been a lot of uncertainties through COVID, and we are seeing more people than ever before. Thanks to their generosity, kids, seniors, Veterans, and families will have much-needed meals today. Thank you for leading the way and being a shining example of caring and compassion for fellow Hoosiers in need.'

'Our mission is to nourish families so they can flourish and thrive, and that means stepping up to help our neighbors when they need it most,' said Oli Morton, Kellogg Company chief customer officer. 'We're proud to partner with our valued customer Dollar General to help support the children and families of Fort Wayne during this challenging time.'

'At Unilever, we feel it is our responsibility to do all we can to help communities who are feeling the impact of the pandemic the most - but we know we can't do it alone,' said Terry Thomas, Unilever executive vice president of customer development. 'That's why we're proud to partner with Dollar General to tackle some of the most urgent challenges our friends in Fort Wayne are facing due to COVID-19. Together, we're working closely with local organizations to support causes like literacy and access to food and essential supplies. We know there has never been a more important time to stand united for our communities.'