In an effort to support their local communities, employees of Ready Auto Transport, Manheim Phoenix, and Manheim St. Louis collected enough food to help United Food Bank of Arizona and St. Louis Area Foodbank provide more than 16,000 meals to less fortunate members of their communities.

More than 9,000 items were collected during these two food drives held prior to the 2013 holiday season. 

Employee teams from Ready Auto Transport and Manheim Phoenix partnered to lead a food drive to benefit United Food Bank of Arizona, collecting nearly 6,000 items that weighed nearly 2.5 tons. The donations helped United Food Bank provide 4,000 meals to the local community. The donations were collected at Ready Auto Transport in Chandler, Ariz., and at Manheim Phoenix in Tolleson, Ariz., from Nov. 1-Dec. 19, 2013.

Employees and customers of Manheim St. Louis collected 3,265 items in November 2013 to benefit the St. Louis Area Foodbank.  The employees collected 15,000 pounds of food that was used to help provide 12,490 meals for those in need.  

“It was a phenomenal success,” said Jerry Tassone, president of Ready Auto Transport, of the collection for United Food Bank. “The beauty of this donation is that our employees pulled together to not only make their own donations, but to seek support from their families, friends and neighbors. It was a great team effort from two organizations of the Manheim family.”

“The employees at Manheim Phoenix and Ready Auto Transport really deserve the credit for the success of this food drive,” said Jim Mumford, Manheim Phoenix general manager. “They collected 80 percent of these items themselves and encouraged others to donate. We really have made a difference in the community with this food drive.” 

Ready Auto Transport has supported United Food Bank for several years, and Manheim Phoenix joined the giving effort for this year’s drive.

“We appreciate the continued support of Ready Auto Transport and Manheim Phoenix, and the employees of both locations,” said Lisa J. Pino, President and CEO of United Food Bank. “The amount of food collected was amazing. This was the largest private company donation that we have ever received.” 

In addition to the food collection, Manheim St. Louis employees held the inaugural Souper Chili Bowl, created by employees Pam Fischer and Melissa Powell. Employees donated $3 or three cans of food for the opportunity to sample and vote on their colleagues’ best chili and soup dishes. In addition to the food donations, a total of $3,338 was raised through this event.

An estimated 57,100 people rely on the St. Louis Area Foodbank for food assistance each week.  The Manheim St. Louis food and funds drive, combined with their volunteer effort, kept many of those individuals from having to wonder where their next meal would come from.

To make a donation to the United Food Bank, click here. To make a donation to the St. Louis Area Foodbank, click here.