Arvest Bank was scheduled to launch our annual two-month Million Meals initiative to fight hunger in the four-state region the bank serves on March 30. Instead, we are proactively providing one million meals in the fight against hunger.
In this, its 10th year, Arvest’s Million Meals campaign has raised a total of 17,068,971 meals, which includes more than $3 million in funds given directly to our dozens of local food partners.
Arvest made the decision to provide one million meals – in the form of direct monetary donations – to this year’s 80-plus food partners because they likely will see an increased need for help due to the effects of COVID-19. Arvest encourages anyone who usually supports the Million Meals campaign through in-branch food contributions or fundraisers to donate directly to their local food bank or other appropriate organization if they are able.
The bank’s decision to launch Million Meals in 2011 and provide at least one million meals annually was based on the fact hunger is an issue in every community Arvest serves. In 2018, 11.1 percent of American households were food-insecure, meaning they had difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources