2014 GUIDE BOOK
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Welcome
Thank you for being a Harvest for Hunger coordinator for the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. As a Campaign Coordinator, you are joining hundreds of other volunteers who are dedicated to making a difference in the lives of those in need in our community. Harvest for Hunger is a collaborative effort of four food banks that serve 21 counties in Northeast Ohio. This partnership results in one of the largest food and funds drives in the country. 100 percent of all Harvest for Hunger donations goes to provide food for those in need. This Coordinator Guide will focus on steps to assist you in making your Harvest for Hunger campaign fun and successful. It is designed to offer you hunger facts, tools, tips and best practices. If at any time you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the staff at the Foodbank. Leslie Letner Senior Manager, Corporate Relations & Special Events 330.777.7572 or lletner@acrfb.org Stephanie Hinchliffe Campaign Coordinator 330.777.1055 or shinchliffe@acrfb.org Thank you again for volunteering to be part of the Harvest for Hunger campaign. By participating in this vital campaign you are helping to Feed People and Fight Hunger in our community.
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Campaign Details 2014 GOAL Our goal is to raise $1,035,000 through this year’s Harvest for Hunger campaign. CO-CHAIRS CJ Fraleigh
Shawn McCall
Bill Frantz
Chairman & CEO Shearer’s Foods
President US Foods
President Sandridge Food Corporation
SUPERMARKET PARTNERS Local supermarkets are partnering to Check Out Hunger. Scan a $1, $5 or $10 coupon at the cash register to make your donation at these participating supermarkets: • • • • • •
Buehler’s Fresh Foods Dave’s Supermarkets Fishers Foods Giant Eagle Heinen’s Fine Foods Additional support from UFCW Local 880
MEDIA PARTNERS Watch and listen for promotions provided by these partners: • • • • • •
About Magazine Akron Beacon Journal Dunkin Donuts The Independent The Repository The Suburbanite
• • • • • •
The Times-Reporter Walgreens WJW Fox 8 WEWS NewsChannel 5 WKYC TV 3 WOIO 19 Action News
Get up-to-date information about Harvest for Hunger by visiting the Foodbank website, akroncantonfoodbank.org.
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WHAT’S NEW 17TH ANNUAL FEINSTEIN CHALLENGE TO FIGHT HUNGER This year, a portion of dollars raised through Harvest for Hunger will be eligible for a match provided by The Feinstein Foundation. Each Spring, the Feinstein Challenge distributes $1 million dollars among non profit hunger fighting agencies who collect donations during the months of March and April. These donations can include cash, checks, food items ($1.00 per item) and pledges! Register your campaign online today to make your donation go even further this year thanks to the Feinstein Challenge. SECOND ANNUAL VIRTUAL IDOL Last year’s inaugural Virtual Idol competition provided 44,272 meals for the hungry in our community. NEW this year is the addition of a prize package for the winner of Virtual Idol. The winner of Virtual Idol will receive a prize package valued at over $1,500. See page 13 for registration and prize package information. BROWN BAG DAY Plan ahead and join us on Wednesday, March 26 for Brown Bag Day. Employees across our 21-county network of Foodbank’s are encouraged to pack their lunch in lieu of dining out and make a monetary donation to the Foodbank. Tweet or Instagram a photo of your lunch using #BrownBagDay to show your support!
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A message from Brittany Cochenour, 2013 Campaign Coordinator of the Year
It all comes down to helping others. What a great feeling knowing your food & funds drive efforts can help a family have a hot meal on their table or give a child a healthy lunch. Individually we can make a difference, but it’s when we work together that we make a significant impact on the welfare of others. Coordinating the food & funds drive campaign helped raise awareness of just how serious hunger is in our community, and motivated Union Hospital to collect 8,000 pounds of food! While it was a very exciting feeling to have had such a great outcome to our food & funds drive it warmed my heart to know we were able to help so many people. Some best practices: • Get some healthy competition going in your workplace! Be creative! • Establish a theme for your internal competition, like ours “Hunger Games.” • Always be motivating and encouraging. We counted food & funds donated every Wednesday and Friday to keep interest high. • People like to know what they are donating towards. Example: $1 = 4 meals. • Educate on hunger and how it impacts your community. • Get your top management and leaders involved to encourage those they work it.
The Super Six boxed cereal peanut butter canned tuna canned vegetables canned beef stew canned soup
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STEPS TO SUCCESS Running Your Food & Funds Drive
• Plan fun activities. See the Creative Food & Funds Drive Ideas in this guide for suggestions. • Hold a kick-off event. • Continue to promote throughout the campaign. Track your progress by posting creative signs in a public area and sending out e-blasts. • Encourage financial donations – they make the biggest impact in the fight against hunger. • Encourage food donations to be from the Super Six Most Needed Items.
Celebrating Your Success
• Hold a celebration at the end of your drive. Invite a Foodbank staff member to attend your celebration event to personally thank employees and share the impact of your donations. Ask your CEO to say a few words of appreciation as well. • Reflect on your drive. Keep good notes to use next year. Mark Harvest for Hunger on your calendar for next Spring.
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Best Practices
Below are some best practices to help make your campaign a success: CEO SUPPORT As with any project, your Harvest for Hunger food & funds drive works best if you have support from the top. That's why it's important to meet with your chief executive officer to gain his or her endorsement. Ask him or her to send an email to all staff encouraging them to join in supporting this vital effort. ISSUE A CHALLENGE Start an internal competition or issue a challenge to an area business in your field. Some of the best food & funds drives implement challenges between departments, floors, or other area businesses. Competition fosters teamwork and gets everyone involved! LEVERAGE A CORPORATE MATCH When a corporation agrees to match employee donations, we always see an increase in giving –everyone loves to double their impact! Consider matches for the entire drive or for a certain time period. Why not match online sales or donations given at your register? PAYROLL DEDUCTION Payroll deduction simplifies making a gift to the campaign. Provide employees the opportunity to use this practical and easy method of donating. Making a $5 donation from a bi-weekly pay check for a year would feed a family of 5 for one month! Contact your HR or Payroll Department about starting payroll deduction. USE SOCIAL MEDIA Social media is a fun, easy and free way to convey Harvest for Hunger messages to a broad audience. Using tools like Facebook and Twitter is a perfect way to showcase your organization’s community involvement, motivate employees to participate in activities and to build buzz about Harvest for Hunger in the community. Don’t forget to“like” the AkronCanton Regional Foodbank on Facebook and follow us on Twitter! You can share your campaign success on our pages. Sample posts are available at akroncantonfoodbank.org.
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OBTAIN MANAGEMENT SUPPORT Talk to your company’s leadership about approving a campaign committee and budget, allowing use of company time for campaign meetings and activities. Ask top managers to publicly support and participate in campaign events. SPECIAL EVENTS Special events are your opportunity to add a little something extra to your campaign. Events provide opportunities for employee involvement and team-building experiences. Special events can also help improve employee morale, build relations and increase retention rates. They will not only help raise much needed funds for the campaign, but they can also educate your employees about the Foodbank. This guide provides some suggestions for special events that you can try. INCENTIVES Consider incentives designed to encourage participation and entice new donors. Structure campaign incentives around giving levels and encourage employees to increase their contribution. Incentives to use if you don’t have a budget--- prime parking spots, dress down days, having someone start your car and scrape off your car windows, traveling trophy, or a pass for a long lunch. COMMUNICATE AND EDUCATE A successful campaign is built around effective communication to participants. Use multiple methods of communication to promote your campaign, and provide progress updates throughout the campaign on your efforts. Visit akroncantonfoodbank.org to download sample emails, memos and social media posts. Educate everyone in the organization about hunger and the work of the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. Foodbank staff is available to visit your site and speak to your staff about hunger in our area. Also consider bringing a group of employees to the Foodbank for a tour or volunteer session. Contact Leslie Letner at lletner@acrfb.org to schedule a presentation or tour. GET VISITORS INVOLVED Consider holding events or contests on days when agents, satellite employees, or board members will be in the office. You can also involve your customers in your campaign by conducting promotions that involve the public. Both of these concepts are great ways to build morale and showcase community-based company values.
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Creative Food & Funds Drive Ideas DENIM DAYS Denim Days are one of the easiest and most effective ways to raise money in workplaces. Employees can pay $5 to dress down for a day. Give each donor a sticker or button to show their support of Harvest for Hunger. Place a sign in the reception area announcing the Denim Day to alert clients and visitors of why employees are dressed down. Appointing a few employees per floor can help with the collection of money, and it’s a great way to make the coordinator’s job easier. BOX YOUR BOSS Test employee hand-eye coordination with a video game tournament. Whether it is boxing, bowling, racing or golf, employees can get out of their office and move around while enjoying friendly competition between teams or departments. MINUTE TO WIN IT Based on the new television game show Minute to Win it, contestants are asked to do an activity involving household items in under a minute to win. Examples include: pull all the tissue out of a box, blow up as many balloons as possible or stack cups into a tower. Have executives compete with an employee challenger, or divide the organization into teams and host brackets – each game only takes a minute! THE GUESSING GAME The simplest version is a large jar filled with virtually any item as long as it takes a lot of them to fill the jar. Candy is a great example. Participants then pay $1 to guess how many items are in the jar. The closest guess wins the contents of the jar. PANCAKE BREAKFAST This is among the creative fund raising ideas that will be unmistakably loved by morning persons. What better way than to jumpstart the day then with flour and egg ensembles topped with maple syrup or strawberry jam? Not to mention, there is that steaming cup of hot chocolate to go with the meal.
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GUESS THE BABY We all have at least one embarrassing baby picture buried in our photo albums. Display baby pictures of each employee and have a contest to guess who the babies are! Sell guess sheets for $5. CANSTRUCTURE Have different campaign participants build structures out of canned goods. People could then vote with their spare change on the structure they like best. The winning team would receive a prize, and all of the canned goods and funds are then donated to the Foodbank. SILENT/LIVE AUCTION Silent and/or live auctions can be very successful. Ask a local business to donate gift certificates or merchandise to support the campaign. Their donation will be auctioned off to the highest bidder. Auctions are a winwin scenario. The funds raised are going toward a worthwhile cause and participants get something in return for their donation. THE PRICE IS RIGHT Let employees guess the “retail value� of various food items. The one who guesses closest without going over gets to play a game based on the classic Price is Right game show. SURVIVOR Create tribes to compete against one another including at least one member from leadership for each team. Have mental and physical challenges each day for a week where tribes compete for prizes such as arrive late to work certificates, extra time at lunch or get tickets for local events. Challenges can include office golf, puzzles or scavenger hunts. Award a grand prize to last tribe standing. EMPLOYEE CAR WASH Recruit a team of people to wash cars (consider involving managers) and determine shifts. Set up a wash site in your employee parking lot. Car wash tickets can be purchased, or you can work for tips!
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VIRTUAL IDOL Click, listen and vote for your favorite singer in our 2nd Annual Virtual Idol completion. Last year’s inaugural Virtual Idol competition provided 44,272 meals for the hungry in our community. Consider supporting this great avenue to raise funds to feed the hungry while supporting local singers vying for the title of Harvest for Hunger Idol. We are pleased to announce the addition of a PRIZE PACKAGE for the winner of Virtual Idol to use towards the quest to musical stardom! The winner will have the option to choose either one year of voice lessons OR a professionally recorded three-song demo provided by the Fairlawn & Hudson Schools of Music. The winner will also be awarded a photo package from Love What I Do Photography. YOU can become a contestant by submitting your own 3-minute video. Be sure to complete your online registration by March 24, 2014. Voting begins April 1, 2014, and the winner will be announced on May 1, 2014. Visit our website for a complete list of rules and details, akroncantonfoodbank.org. 2014 GUIDE BOOK | 13
WRAPPING UP Financial Donations
• Mail or deliver checks to the Foodbank. Please do not mail cash donations. Foodbank staff will be happy to pick up donations. • All checks should be made payable to: “Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank.” • Credit card donations can be made online or over the phone. Please remind your coworkers to indicate that their donation should be credited to your drive. • Matching Gifts — Many corporations have a matching gift program. Please consult your HR department to see if your company matches charitable contributions to the Foodbank. When making a contribution that your company will match, be sure to enclose the appropriate paperwork with your gift.
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Food Donations
• Participate in a Harvest for Hunger Delivery Day on Friday, April 18, 2014. No appointment is necessary—just bring your food donations to the shipping and receiving lot of the Foodbank between 8am and 4pm. • If you can’t make it to a Delivery Day, contact the Foodbank staff to schedule a food donation drop-off time. The Foodbank considers the transportation of collected food as part of your donation. Your delivery to our warehouse allows us to use our resources in a cost-effective manner. • If your food collection is too large to deliver yourself, please contact Foodbank staff to schedule a food pick-up. Please schedule pickups at least one week in advance. We are not able to schedule exact appointment times. Please let the Foodbank staff know if you have limited business hours. • If your food donations barrel becomes full before the end of your drive, we are happy to schedule a barrel exchange. Please plan ahead whenever possible; the Foodbank will need a one week notice to dispatch a truck. We suggest contacting the Foodbank when your barrel is 2/3 full. • Your food donations are protected against liability. On October 1, 1996, President Clinton signed The Bill Emerson Good Samaritan Food Donation Act to encourage donation of food grocery products to non-profit organizations for distribution to individuals in need. The law protects all food and grocery donors who donate apparently wholesome food in good-faith from civil and criminal liability.
Tax Receipts
All donors will receive a thank you letter that will serve as their tax receipt, providing that the Foodbank receives the following at the time the donation is submitted: donor name, complete address, phone number, donation amount and gift date.
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RECOGNITION & AWARDS Campaign Recognition
The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank would like to honor those companies, organizations, and schools with outstanding food and funds drives. Awards will be distributed at the Wrap Up Celebration. Awards will be calculated based on donations received on or before April 26, 2014. FINANCIAL DONATION LEVELS Diamond $25,000 and above Platinum $10,000 to $24,999 Gold $8,000 to $9,999 Silver $4,000 to $7,999 Bronze $1,000 to $3,999 FOOD DONATION LEVELS Diamond 10,000 pounds and above Platinum 8,000 to 9,999 pounds Gold 6,000 to 7,999 pounds Silver 3,000 to 5,999 pounds Bronze 1,000 to 2,999 pounds
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2013 Top Financial Campaigns
DIAMOND LEVEL
BRONZE LEVEL
Akron Children’s Hospital
ACRT Inc.
Aultman Health Foundation
Affinity Medical Center
FirstEnergy Corporation
Akron Beacon Journal Akron Metropolitan Housing Authority
PLATINUM LEVEL
Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce
Bridgestone Americas
City of Akron
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
The Davis Family Charitable Fund
The J. M. Smucker Company
Ernst & Young
Roetzel & Andress
GE Capital
Sterling Jewelers, Inc.
GPD Group The Hillier Family Foundation
GOLD LEVEL Nationwide Insurance
Leiden Cabinet Company MLB, Inc. Olive Garden
SILVER LEVEL Akron General Health System Akron Public Schools
OMNOVA Solutions Revere Middle School SS&G Financial
Bober Markey Fedorovich Nationwide Insurance Processing Center OE CONNECTION Ohio Edison Summa Health System The County of Summit
2013 Top Food Campaigns
DIAMOND LEVEL Aultman Health Foundation
BRONZE LEVEL Akron Children’s Hospital Akron General Health System
GOLD LEVEL Union Hospital
Akron Public Schools The County of Summit FirstMerit Bank
SILVER LEVEL
GE Capital Retail Bank
FirstEnergy Corporation
Hatton Elementary
Manchester High School
Lambda/Chi Alpha Fraternity
Summa Health System
Mercy Medical Center
Westfield Insurance
Nationwide Insurance Revere Middle School Saltbox/Bountiful Gifts Sterilite of Ohio University of Akron, Bierce Library
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Campaign Awards YOUNG HARVESTER AWARD In addition to providing an important service to the community, students participating in Harvest for Hunger are also learning about the issue of hunger and community involvement. The Young Harvester award recognizes a student or group of students for their positive actions and leadership in the fight against hunger. COORDINATOR OF THE YEAR AWARD In an effort to recognize the work of our coordinators and campaign heroes, the Foodbank has developed a Coordinator of the Year Award. This award will be given to a campaign coordinator that goes above and beyond to ensure that the in-house food & funds drive they coordinated is a success. To nominate a person or group for either of these honors, please contact Stephanie Hinchliffe at shinchliffe@acrfb.org or 330.777.1055 by April 15, 2014.
Previous Award Recipients YOUNG 2010 2011 2012 2013
HARVESTER Isabel Biasella Elise Endress, Catie Pusateri, Ryan Stouffer and Ben Vrobel Revere Middle School Ava Preston
COORDINATOR OF THE YEAR 2011 Delores Jones, FirstEnergy Corp. 2012 Carolyn B. Hofmann, Akron Children’s Hospital 2013 Brittany Cochenour, Union Hospital
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Harvest for Hunger and where do our donations go? A: Harvest for Hunger, a collaboration of four food banks in Northeast Ohio, is one of the largest food and funds drives in the country. Donations collected locally provide free food to the 500 member agencies served by the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank in Carroll, Holmes, Medina, Portage, Stark, Summit, Tuscarawas and Wayne counties. Q: Do you prefer monetary donations or food donations? A: Financial donations provide the biggest impact in the fight to end hunger. The Foodbank can provide four meals for every $1 donated. Q: Is my contribution tax-deductible? A: Yes, all contributions to Harvest for Hunger are tax deductible. If an employee or student includes their name and complete address with their donation, the Foodbank will send him/her a personalized letter acknowledging the gift. Q: Why is setting a goal important and how do I set our goal? A: Goal-setting is an important part of your in-house campaign. The Foodbank encourages you to set realistic and achievable goals. Setting goals is designed to assist the Foodbank in meeting urgent food needs and a challenging campaign goal of $1,035,000. Recommendations for goal-setting would be a 10% increase over the prior year’s total, a per capita giving of $5 and 5 pounds per employee or a total meal goal. Q: How do I convert our donations into meals? A: The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank leverages economies of scale, bulk buying and partnerships with grocers and food companies to make sure donations have the greatest impact. For every $1 donated the Foodbank is able to provide four meals. Feeding America indicates that an average meal is calculated at 1.2 pounds of food. Therefore, to convert pounds into meals, divide total pounds by 1.2.
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Q: How much of the money raised goes to programs and services? A: 100 percent of all Harvest for Hunger donations are used for programs and services. Overall, 93 percent of every dollar donated to the Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank supports programs and services. Seven percent is used for fundraising costs and administration, making the Foodbank one of the most efficient major nonprofit organizations in the area. Q: What if I think our associates feel that they are unable donate? A: Implementing a payroll deduction plan will allow employees to invest a small amount each pay period, making it easier for associates to participate. Every investment, no matter how large, when combined with the thousands of others donating throughout the community will have a measurable impact. Q: If our business or organization has more than one location participating in Harvest for Hunger, what information do we need to turn in with our donation? A: If your organization will be collecting donations of food & funds from multiple locations, please provide the same contact person and contact address for all of your location donations. This person will receive the donation confirmation and thank you from the Foodbank Q: Whom do I call for media coverage for my special event? A: We ask that you not contact the media directly, but rather you let the Foodbank staff contact media partners about your special events. Contact Kat Pestian at 330.777.2317 or email the information to kpestian@acrfb.org. Q: What are the most needed food items? A: The “Super Six” most needed food items are: canned tuna fish, canned vegetables, peanut butter, boxed cereal, canned soup and canned beef stew. Focusing your campaign on the “Super Six” most needed food items will greatly improve the efficiency with which hunger centers can provide assistance to those in need. Canned meats like salmon, spam, ham and chicken, and canned meals like stew and chili also make great donations.
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Thank You
The dedicated support of you and your team will directly assist the AkronCanton Regional Foodbank in making a significant impact in the fight to end hunger. Your support will help bring hope to the 240,000 people in our community who are food insecure - the children in our area who go to bed hungry, the seniors who are choosing between paying for prescriptions or buying groceries and the working poor who must decide between paying for transportation or having dinner. Your efforts and contribution to this year’s Harvest for Hunger campaign demonstrate a true commitment to helping us in our mission to Feed People and Fight Hunger. On behalf of our partner agencies and clients, thank you! It is only with people like you, that we will one day see an end to hunger in this community.
Š2014 Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank. All rights reserved. The Akron-Canton Regional Foodbank is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit recognized by the IRS. 2014 GUIDE BOOK | 23