Wesley Healthcare, as a part of HCA Healthcare, announced the results of its annual Healthy Food for Healthier Tomorrows Food and Nutrition Drive. Part of that announcement included regional winners of a contest to see which HCA facility could build the best sculpture using the donated food.
This past fall, HCA Healthcare affiliate hospitals along with The HCA Healthcare Foundation provided 878,000 nutritious meals to food banks across the country by donating food or making financial contributions to help purchase perishable items such as milk, fruit and vegetables. This eclipses the 370,000 meals provided by the organization in 2021 by more than half a million.
Wesley Healthcare, part of the Continental Division, created a sculpture that depicts the iconic Keeper of the Plains. The judges selected Wesley’s sculpture as the best sculpture in the division, winning $10,000 to be given to the Kansas Food Bank!
In addition to the $10,000, Wesley colleagues also donated 440 lbs. of food to the Kansas Food Bank.
“It’s a privilege for our Wesley colleagues to participate in this food drive,” stated Scott Evans, Manager of Community Engagement. “Not only did we get to donate food to our neighbors in need, we were able to utilize our creativity and imagination to win an additional $10,000 to the Kansas Food Bank. Our colleagues care deeply about the communities in which we all live and work, and our ability to collect hundreds of pounds of food and spend the time necessary to win the sculpture contest is a true testament to our desire to give back.”
“Last year, the Kansas Food Bank provided more than 13.6 million meals to Kansans struggling to put food on the table,” said Brian Walker, President and CEO of the Kansas Food Bank. “It is because of donations and partners such as Wesley Healthcare that we are able to provide those missing meals for families, children and seniors who turn to us for help. We are truly thankful for this donation and thrilled that the Wesley team's Keeper of the Plains food sculpture won best in the division.”
Food insecurity, the lack of consistent access to enough food to have an active, healthy lifestyle, affects 1 in 7 Kansas families. The United States Department of Agriculture reports that 13.5 million U.S. households were food insecure at some point in 2021.
The 878,000 nutritious meals provided to families by HCA Healthcare included:
80,722 meals donated by colleagues
196,313 meals from colleague charitable donations
143,333 meals from division gifts
458,000 meals from $140,000 in grants provided by the HCA Healthcare Foundation to the winning facilities and divisions of a creative food sculpture contest.