The Atlanta Hawks chief slogan is, “True to Atlanta.”
On March 27, the basketball team remained true to that credo, as they partnered with Goodr, State Farm Arena and Atlanta Parks & Recreation to distribute groceries to more than 500 families fighting food insecurity during the COVID-19 crisis.
Once we began hearing back from the community, particularly, our partner Atlanta Parks & Recreation, about there being a need regarding food insecurity,” said Andrea Carter, vice president of corporate social responsibility with the Atlanta Hawks. “We wanted to see how we can fill that void.”
The Hawks reached out to none other than Jasmine Crowe, CEO of Goodr. Goodr is a non-profit company that helps restaurants and companies give their surplus food items to local families in need while ensuring a secure tax donation from their partnering businesses.
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It was the second time the Atlanta Hawks and Goodr have partnered for a pop-up grocery store. In January 2019, Goodr helped open the MLK Aquatic and Recreation Center in the Old Fourth Ward when they had a pop-up grocery store while the Hawks helped commemorate the grand opening of the center.
“I’m grateful to State Farm, I’m grateful to the Hawks and I’m grateful to be in a position to put these kinds of events together and help in their time of need,” Crowe explained.
State Farm and Atlanta Parks and Recreation have partnered with the Hawks going back to 2018 when the basketball team celebrated their 50th anniversary in Atlanta.
“Right before we went to the work from home mode and events were postponed at State Farm Arena, there was a surplus of food at the arena from that event about three weeks ago,” Carter said. “(Crowe) and her company rescued more than 12,000 pounds of food and they were able to distribute the food over three counties in Metro Atlanta.”
The Hawks have also launched a pilot program with Emory Healthcare that provided more 4,000 weekly meals to 1,000 workers currently treating the COVID-19 sufferers in the healthcare industry, including first responders.
According to Carter, the Hawks want to stand in the gap and support the people who are working long hours to save lives who are unable to go to the grocery store. In addition, the program, Healthcare Heroes, aims to keep restaurants open and active during the COVID-19 public health crisis.
“We launched that program last Friday and we have a firm target on food insecurity in our city,” Carter explained. “We know there are several community efforts and organizations that have needs, but we need to take care of those that take care of us.”
