Joseph Merritt Co. Uses Food Drive to Raise Awareness of Hunger Issues
HARTFORD, Conn.—November 25, 2015—Joseph Merritt Co. completed its fourth annual companywide food drive. Every year the food drive concludes on the Friday before Thanksgiving. The timing of this donation is deliberate in an attempt to help with the Thanksgiving rush and help to replenish the pantry's shelves. Last year, the company collected and donated 1,262 items. This year, the branches donated food and hygiene items, as well as money. The donations were distributed to locations near the company’s branches including the MANNA Community Pantry in Hartford, Connecticut Food Bank in East Haven and Amos House in Providence, Rhode Island.
Giving back to the communities is important to Merritt. Each year Merritt sponsors charitable events supporting education, health and social concerns. Helping others is also important to Merritt’s employees.
"The food drive was started by our employees," said Ed Perry, president and CEO of Joseph Merritt Co. "They recognized a need in our communities and wanted to do what they could to help."
Donations getting ready to go to MANNA.
Merritt’s headquarters are in Hartford. Connecticut Food Bank reports that one in seven households do not have the means to provide for the food they need. Food insecurity is a phrase used by the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to describe the lack of consistent access to adequate amounts of food for an active, healthy life. The Map The Meal Gap 2015 study shows Connecticut’s overall child food insecurity rate is 19 percent, or 152,990 children statewide. The study reports a large portion of these children come from homes that do not qualify for federal or state assistance. In some cases, the families have to choose between paying utilities and purchasing food.
About Joseph Merritt Co.
Joseph Merritt Co. is a national leader in the graphic imaging industry. Since 1908, the Merritt company has been a trend-setting, highly diversified company. With its five unique product groups, Merritt offers customers a full complement of digital services ranging from document printing, grand-format and small-format printing, direct mail services, custom graphic fabrication, document scanning, and document retrieval to printer sales and service.
Source: Joseph Merritt Co.
