FORT WAYNE, Ind. (Nov. 26, 2009)  — When families are struggling to make ends meet feeding the family pet can lead to some difficult decisions as to whether they can afford to keep that beloved family member. However, due to the generosity of visitors to the Northeastern Indiana Kennel Club’s Old Fort Cluster Dog Show, some may not have to make that difficult decision. In October at the Allen County Memorial Coliseum more than 3,639 pounds of pet food along with other food items and $166 cash was collected and donated to Community Harvest Food Bank to help those in need.

“The Northeastern Indiana Kennel Club was thrilled by the generosity the community showed in donating pet food. So many people and their pets will benefit from this kindness,” said Ann Stucky, Northeastern Indiana Kennel Club. “Thank you so much to everyone who donated.”

As the show dogs competed visitors brought with them pet food to help those animals less fortunate. “The Memorial Coliseum was pleased to be involved with the Old Fort Cluster Dog Show in collecting pet food for Community Harvest Food Bank,” said Randy Brown, Executive Vice-President & General Manager. “This was one of the largest donations of food items that we have seen at the Coliseum.”

Some might be surprised to learn that Community Harvest also collects pet food. “Our job is to feed hungry people and one way we can do that is to alleviate the need for them to purchase pet food, when we can, so that they can use their available money to purchase nutritious food for their family,” said Jane Avery, Executive Director, Community Harvest Food Bank. “We primarily try to help non-profit animal shelters with pet food whenever we receive it, however, this donation will help lots of pets in northeast Indiana.”

About The Northeastern Indiana Kennel Club
The objectives of the N.E.I.K.C. are to encourage lend aid to the novice and inexperienced dog owners and to do all in its power to protect and advance the interest of all breeds of purebred dogs and to encourage sportsman-like competition at the dog shows and obedience trials. www.neikc.org

Community Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Indiana, Inc. is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the alleviation of hunger through the full use of donated food and other resources. As the largest food bank in northeast Indiana, it collects and distributes over 10 million pounds of donated, surplus food annually through a network of human service member agencies. These agencies offer assistance to hungry people, acting as a safety net to ensure that everyone receives their daily bread with dignity. www.communityharvest.org

FORT WAYNE, Ind, (Nov. 18, 2009) — Indiana Pork, in partnership with Feeding Indiana’s Hungry, Inc., donated 5,000 pounds of ground pork to Community Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Indiana Tuesday, Nov. 17. It is the first delivery of approximately 90,000 pounds of pork earmarked for northeast Indiana. The pork donation is the beginning of a bold, ambitious and ongoing campaign for Indiana pork producers, industry partners, friends and the general public to fund a program to donate pork products to Hoosiers experiencing hunger.

This initiative is designed to help thousands of Hoosier families with one of their most essential needs – high quality protein. The lofty goal of the campaign is to provide one million ground pork meals per year, throughout the year, to those in need. These pork meals will be distributed statewide through the nine food bank members of Feeding Indiana’s Hungry, Inc., Indiana’s statewide network of food banks.

“Indiana pork producers saw the need in the state and they came to us with a plan to provide one million pork meals per year. This isn’t a one-time commitment. They want us to rely on them for a significant donation of pork every year!” said Jane Avery, Community Harvest Food Bank Executive Director. “They’ve always been generous but this really couldn’t have come at a better time for us. 90,000 pounds of pork will go a long way towards helping our hungry neighbors in northeast Indiana as we head into the winter heating months especially. We couldn’t be prouder of our association with Indiana Pork.”

“Indiana donations of pork products have been in place for decades, however, this is the first time the Indiana pork industry is tackling the problem of hunger on a coordinated statewide basis,” said Randy Curless, Indiana Pork President.

The program was formally announced at the Indiana State Fair this summer. “Indiana is blessed with a rich and abundant agricultural economy. There’s no reason anyone in our state should go without a meal,” says Michael Platt, Executive Director of Indiana Pork. “We’re encouraging all of our partners in agriculture to join us to help make Indiana the first hunger free state in the nation.”