Sports venues and convention centers donate food to local communities

In difficult times, many sports venues and convention centers are stepping up and are choosing to donate food to local communities.

With sports venues and convention centers being closed, the many hospitality partners have chosen to donate food to local communities. Instead of letting this food go to waste, their charity is helping both the local community, employees impacted by these closures and others in need. Since we are all in this together, their example can be the positive to keep helping each other.

During these difficult times, helping one another is important. While choosing to self-isolate is key, sports venues and convention centers are doing their part by donating food to local communities. Whether it is the person who is furloughed or the child without school lunch, there are many ways to help others. Maybe a little bit of good karma can make the upside down world a little more balanced.

Here are a few ways that sports venues and convention centers are doing their part.

Hard Rock Stadium, Miami

Part of the Centerplate community, perishable items were donated to local hourly employees. These employee care packages helped those directly impacted by the current situation.

University of Michigan

Feed Our Neighbors, a non-profit group in the Detroit area received donations from Sodexo and Centerplate. 19 pans of prepared food, 10 pounds of fruit, 14 pounds of chocolate milk and 27 cans of vanilla pudding were donated to help support Detroit’s food vulnerable.

This week, our Sodexo and Centerplate team in Ann Arbor donated to the”Feed Our Neighbors” non-profit group, which provides support to the food vulnerable in Detroit.

Staples Center

Often the Staples Center donates surplus food to Los Angeles Midnight Mission. Recently, the venue donated 7,000 pounds of food to The Midnight Mission and Los Angeles Mission Men’s Center. Both organizations are located in the Los Angeles area.

Webster Bank Arena, Bridgeport

Items from the both the concessions and catering departments were donated to Rodney Womble of the Isiah House in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Food included perishable fruits, vegetables and dairy items.

Moda Center and Levy Restaurants

Levy Restaurants, the hospitality partner of the Moda Center, donated 2,800 points of food to Urban Gleaners. Located in Portland, Urban Gleaners takes food that would otherwise be wasted and give its to those in need.

Raleigh Convention Center

Throughout the year, Raleigh Convention Center and Centerplate donate to local charities. The organizations worked with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina to donate almost 800 banquet-ready meals to local organizations. Many homeless and food-insecure were able to have a meal thanks to this donation.

Miami Beach Convention Center

With the Miami City Ballet being postponed, the Miami Beach Convention Center donated 1000+ pounds of food to Food Rescue US.

Additionally, other meeting planners and food service providers are looking to make these food donations more frequently. Beyond the current crisis, the convention center is finding ways to donate leftover food to local charities.

Orange County Convention Center

Since the Orange County Convention Center is not hosting events, Executive Chef James Katurakes hosted an Employee Meal Packing Event. These pre-packaged meal kits were given to full-time hourly employees who were impacted by the current events.

Colorado Convention Center, Denver

In an effort to help the local community, the Colorado Convention Center team donated three pallets of food to We Don’t Waste. In addition, 150 care packages were given to staff to take home.

Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, Dallas

The staff at KBHCC will donate 5000 points of food to local homeless shelters and the City of Dallas Emergency Management Office. Also, the team is looking to provide food to First Responders in the area.

These examples are just a few of the many sports venues, convention centers and other organizations that have chosen to donate food to local communities.

For more information about COVID-19, visit the CDC’s website or the website for your state’s Department of Health.

Do you have a positive story to tell or a story about how people donate food to local communities? Share your story in the comments.