The Atlanta Hawks and State Farm today announced the return of the team’s largest service initiative, a commitment to rally the community for a Million Meal Pack event on Saturday, September 9 at the award-winning State Farm Arena. The organizations are seeking more than 5,000 volunteers to help assemble one million meals that will be distributed throughout the metro Atlanta area with the operational support of U.S. Hunger, a hunger relief organization with innovative programs designed to help feed people struggling with food insecurity. Statistics provided by the Atlanta Community Food Bank show that nearly one in nine Georgians are living with food insecurity, including one in eight children.
Beginning today, volunteer registration is open to the public at Hawks.com/mealpack. After completing a volunteer shift, they will be invited to participate in an exclusive volunteer-only celebration on State Farm Drive that will have games, refreshments, music and fun.
“The partnership between the Hawks and State Farm exemplifies our commitment to improving our community and neighbors in need,” said Steve Koonin, CEO of the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena. “We are excited to invite all of Atlanta to volunteer with us and help us pack one million meals as we combat food insecurity in Atlanta.”
As part of this one-day initiative, the Hawks and State Farm are asking employee and community groups, schools, churches, sororities, fraternities, and local businesses, along with individuals ages five and up to register for at least one shift on Saturday, Sept. 9. Those in attendance will be volunteering alongside influencers and notables from the worlds of sports, entertainment, government and business during a fun-filled day with music, food, performances, free swag and more, all suitable for the entire family.
“We’re proud to host the third Million Meal Pack initiative and look forward to working side by side with our Atlanta neighbors to help those struggling with food insecurity,” said Dan Krause, Senior Vice President at State Farm. “State Farm agents and employees are dedicated to giving back to our communities, and our partnership with the Hawks helps us serve the city of Atlanta on a large scale.”
The food assembly will require six 90-minute meal-packing shifts with approximately 800-1000 volunteers as part of each shift to reach the target number of meals. The meals from the event will be a nutritious, shelf-stable, dried Jambalaya mix that yields six servings when prepared.
The Hawks and State Farm have hosted two Million Meal Pack events, one during the summer of 2022 and the first in 2019. At each event, more than 5,000 volunteers filled the arena and prepared more than one million meals for distribution to local Atlantans through various community food bank organizations.
“We are excited to partner again with State Farm in our shared mission to combat food insecurity in Atlanta,” said Jon Babul, Vice President of Community Impact and Basketball Programs of the Atlanta Hawks and State Farm Arena. “Together, we will make a tangible impact on the lives of countless individuals and families in need, and we encourage everyone to share the link with their networks and join us on Saturday, September 9th.”
The Hawks and State Farm have led efforts in multiple community-focused initiatives to better serve Metro Atlanta. Most recently, the two organizations teamed up to open its ninth Good Neighbor Club in College Park, Ga. at the College Park Auditorium. They have also teamed up on multiple events such as teaming up to inspire the next generation of esports athletes through an event at Ron Anderson Recreation Center in Cobb County. In recent years, the two organizations have collaborated on other endeavors such as providing free pop-up grocery stores in partnership with Goodr Inc., an Atlanta-based social impact startup leveraging technology to reduce food waste and end hunger.
