WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — The Dunkin' Joy in Childhood Foundation, a charity run by Dunkin', wants to help kids dealing with hunger during the pandemic. The foundation recently presented a $10,000 check to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank to help local families put food on the table for their kids.
"This generous donation from Dunkin' Joy in Childhood Foundation is able to help provide 60,000 healthy meals to children in central PA," said Travis Berg with the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank.
"As franchisees, we do a lot of things for our local community, and this is obviously one of the special ones because what it helps and we will provide help throughout the years to come," said Dunkin' franchisee Michael Bower.
The food bank tells Newswatch 16 that the number of people requiring food assistance has grown over the past year because of the pandemic.
"Thousands of families were affected by the pandemic, and one-third of those people were children affected by the pandemic. Our numbers increased by over 40 percent during that time," said Berg.
The Dunkin' Joy in Childhood Foundation gave a total of more than $4.5 million to child health and hunger organizations in 2020.
Those at the food bank say they are very grateful to have support from their local community.
"The community has been amazing in standing behind us, to work with us, to help distribute food, and to help bring food in. It has been amazing to work with those community members in central Pennsylvania," said Berg.
If you live in central Pennsylvania and are struggling to put food on the table during these tough times, your advised to contact the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank for help.