August 8, 2023 —The Kendal Corporation donated over 900 pounds of food during the Food Bank of Delaware’s creative annual donation drive event, CANgineering. 830 food and beverage supplies were used to build and create the “Sustainability Tree” structure designed by the Kendal employee team, which stands over 4-feet-tall, and 6-feet-wide.
Conceived as a food drive “building structure competition,” the fundraising event engages members of Delaware organizations through teamwork, creativity and competition while making a difference in their community by collecting donations to benefit food-insecure Delawareans. The Kendal Corporation’s Director of Outreach and Engagement, Diane Massey, and Kimberly Hill, Office Administrator, coordinated efforts and gathered the pumpkin, green beans, Manwich, peaches, water and other food donations contributed by The Kendal Corporation and many Kendal employees.
Cara Cassner, Director of Digital Marketing at Kendal, and Carlos Menendez, Assistant Director of Information Technology – Network Operations at Kendal, worked closely together on designing and constructing the “Sustainability Tree.” They found themselves facing some structural difficulties as the cans fell halfway through the process. Despite challenges, the team successfully built the structure and, most importantly, generated a large donation for the Food Bank of Delaware, with Carlos sharing, “Patience fosters persistence which is key, in the end, to a successfully completed project.” That patience and effort also garnered Kendal recognition, as the team proudly won the “First Time Builder” Award.
Kendal values connections with local communities in which we operate and where Kendal-affiliated communities exist. To be good neighbors in the communities where Kendal is present, we take great pride in our efforts toward community benefit, especially when those efforts positively impact the older adult population that Kendal serves.
Food Insecurity in Older Adults
Food insecurity is common in older adult populations, and following the pandemic, food insecurity among older adults spread to roughly 5.2 million older Americans. Food-insecure older adults can face adverse effects on their overall quality of life, as it can lead to significantly reduced intake of vital nutrients and a higher prevalence of health problems such as heart attacks, congestive heart failure, diabetes, asthma and depression.
The Food Bank of Delaware supports food-insecure older adults by distributing 18,410 meal boxes to older adults through a monthly distribution program funded by the USDA and the Palmer Home Foundation. Food collected through the CANgineering drive will support this effort and stock the foodbank for other food-insecure populations in Delaware.