BOISE - Food drives during the holiday season aren't new - but one local heavy equipment company is gearing up to help foodbanks right after Christmas.
Western States, the local CAT dealer, will start the "Dump Hunger" campaign on December 29th - and go full force for six weeks into February.
"Hunger doesn’t stop after the holidays,” Western States President Tom Harris said in a prepared statement. “Western States is committed to giving back to the communities in which we live and serve, and we are launching the ‘Dump Hunger’ campaign as a way to rally our employees and customers together to re-stock the warehouses of our area food banks.”
The company hopes to raise 150,000 pounds of food - a big increase from the 116,000 pounds raised last year. Western States says the demand at food banks has jumped more than 30% from last year, which caused them to goose the goal.
“In addition to increasing our goal for gathering more food, Western States will contribute $1 for every 5 pounds of food collected, up to a $17,000 dollar match," Harris said.
The Idaho Foodbank will be the recipient of the food -- enough to fill the bed of two CAT 730 dump trucks if all goes well. January and February are typically the lowest donation times of the year.
You can make a food donation at the Western States CAT store in Meridian at 400 E. Overland Rd. starting December 29th.
