On May 7, 2009, Hopelink will ask for your help in feeding 5,000 families at a special first-ever event in Bellevue Downtown Park, just south of the Bellevue Square mall.

 

Starting at 7:00 a.m., Hopelink, the largest social services agency helping people in east and north King County, will artfully display 5,000 reusable grocery bags in the park in a surprise design. The sheer size of the display will be eye-catching and help draw the public’s attention to the level of need in our own community.

 

People wanting to help feed 5,000 families may visit Hopelink’s website at www.hope-link.org to make a cash donation online or for a suggested shopping list to use at their favorite grocery store. The purchased food may be dropped off at Bellevue Downtown Park that day or at any of Hopelink’s six locations. The public is also invited to come to the park any time after 11:30 a.m. to pick up a bag from the display, fill it with groceries and return it to the park by 7:00 p.m., or to any Hopelink center. Please see Hopelink’s website for center addresses and hours of operation.

 

The goal of “Let’s Feed 5,000 Families” is to help stock Hopelink’s food banks for the coming summer months when families whose children eat free or reduced-price meals at school have to provide those meals themselves. In the areas that Hopelink serves, that amounts to 11,402 children this school year. The 5,000 grocery bags in the park is significant, as it represents the approximate number of household visits that Hopelink expects at its food banks each month this summer. Hopelink shelves need to be filled and ready to meet that need.

 

“This summer, we expect more families than ever before to turn to Hopelink for help feeding their children,” said Marilyn Mason-Plunkett, Hopelink’s president and CEO. “Since the economic downturn began, Hopelink has seen an increase every month in requests for help with food, energy assistance, housing and other essential human services, and we expect that trend to continue this summer. That’s why it is so critical to have the public’s help on May 7 to help us feed 5,000 families.”

 

Hopelink thanks its sponsors for making “Let’s Feed 5,000 Families” possible: ABC’s “Extreme Home Makeover,” KOMO 4, Labor Ready and A.R.C Architects. Hopelink also gratefully acknowledges the help and support of the Bellevue Parks and Community Services department for this event.