SodexoMAGIC and Feeding Our Future® Help BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee Serve More Than 16,000 Summer Lunches

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn., Aug. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- Leveraging a $20,000 Feeding Our Future® grant from the Sodexo Foundation, BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee (BCBST), along with volunteers from SodexoMAGIC, LLC, the Boys & Girls Club and Inner City Ministries closed its fourth year in the program serving more than 16,000 free lunches this summer to Chattanooga children at risk of hunger. Sodexo's Feeding Our Future program provides school children who rely on free and reduced-price meals during the academic year with nutritious lunches during the summer break.

"With nearly one in four children living in households that find it increasingly difficult to put food on the table, there are bound to be additional challenges when the school doors close for the summer," said Stephen J. Brady, president of the Sodexo Foundation. "As the leading food service provider to public schools throughout this country, we understand the needs that exist and we are determined to make a positive impact that leads to the elimination of hunger in this country."  

SodexoMAGIC and BCBST ordered, prepared, and helped serve the meals throughout the program which began June 7th and ended this month. Also playing a vital role in the Feeding Our Future program were volunteers from Inner City Ministries and the Alton Park, East Lake, and Highland Avenue Boys & Girls Clubs. Several SodexoMAGIC employees were instrumental in making sure the program was a success.  They include Susan Lyon, general manager, Jayne McSharry, catering manager, Michael Rogers, catering, Eva Oviatt, supervisor, Ted Flint, cook, LaTonya Kilgore, cashier, Ann Bull, cashier, Stacy Story, cashier, Debra Allen, cook and Neal Seigler, resident district manager.

Every day, an estimated 17 million U.S. children rely on school breakfast and lunch programs as their only guaranteed meals. When schools shut down for the summer, federal meal programs feed only about three million, leaving 13 million children at risk for hunger. To help bridge this gap, the Sodexo Foundation, the independent charitable organization of Sodexo, Inc., has provided free lunches to children through its summer feeding program, Feeding Our Future, since 1997.  The Sodexo Foundation provides grants to local Sodexo accounts to purchase food for the meals and local Sodexo employees prepare the meals each day.

In addition to Chattanooga, Feeding Our Future will be providing more than 300,000 summer lunches in 19 other cities in the United States: Atlanta, Ga., Boston, Mass., Buffalo, N.Y., Camden, N.J., Chicago, Ill.,  Denver, Colo., Detroit, Mich., Fort Worth, Texas, Honolulu, Hawaii, Houston, Texas, Los Angeles, Calif.,  Miami, Fla., New York, N.Y., Oklahoma City, Okla., San Jose, Calif., St. Cloud, Minn., St. Louis, Mo., Terre Haute, Ind. and Washington, D.C.  

Feeding Our Future is a program of the Sodexo Foundation, an independent charitable organization supporting hunger-related initiatives that focus on eliminating the root causes of hunger in the U.S. Sodexo pays all administrative costs of the Foundation to ensure that all money raised is directed to those in need.

For more details, please visit www.helpstophunger.org.

About Sodexo

SodexoMAGIC, LLC

SodexoMAGIC, LLC is a joint venture between Sodexo Operations, LLC and Magic Food Provision, LLC, a subsidiary of Magic Johnson Enterprises, the majority owner. Since 2006, this strategic alliance leverages the power of NBA Legend Earvin "Magic" Johnson's brand with Sodexo's extensive portfolio of quality of life offerings, management capabilities, and technical and operational expertise. SodexoMAGIC is dedicated to addressing the specific needs of multi-cultural communities and improving the quality of life for those we serve. Certified by the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), SodexoMAGIC is recognized as one of the fastest growing minority–owned businesses in its industry.  

Sodexo in North America

Sodexo, Inc. (www.sodexoUSA.com ), leading Quality of Daily Life Solutions company in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, delivers On Site Service Solutions in Corporate, Education, Health Care, Government, and Remote Site segments, as well as Motivation Solutions such as Esteem Pass. Sodexo, Inc., headquartered in Gaithersburg, Md., funds all administrative costs for the Sodexo Foundation (www.SodexoFoundation.org), an independent charitable organization that, since its founding in 1999, has made more than $12 million in grants to fight hunger in America. Visit the corporate blog at www.sodexoUSA.com/blog.

Sodexo, world leader in Quality of Daily Life Solutions

Quality of Life plays an important role in the progress of individuals and the performance of organizations.  Based on this conviction, Sodexo is the strategic partner for companies and institutions that place a premium on performance and well-being, as it has since Pierre Bellon founded the company in 1966. Sharing the same passion for service, Sodexo's 380,000 employees, in 80 countries design, manage and deliver an unrivaled range of On-site Service Solutions and Motivation Solutions. Sodexo has created a new form of service business that contributes to the economic, social and environmental development of the communities, regions and countries in which it operates and to the fulfillment of its employees.

SOURCE SodexoMAGIC