Whirlpool Corporation’s Findlay, Ohio plant recently donated to the local United Way of Hancock County Crisis Relief Fund to cover three weeks of the Feed-A-Child program. The funds provided breakfast and lunch to Hancock County students who would have otherwise missed these meals due to school closure.
“Our Findlay team is passionate about supporting our community and we have a strong relationship with United Way,” said Plant Lead Ramsey Aljahmi.
“They reached out to us for assistance with something that is near and dear to our employees’ hearts—our children,” said Human Resources and PD Pillar Lead Amanda Quick, who worked on the donation. “We know many families rely on the school lunch program to ensure the proper care and nutrition needs are met for these children, and we wanted to continue that program even while schools are closed.”
The Halt Hunger Initiative
The United Way funds the program as a part of its Halt Hunger Initiative. During the regular school year, this particular program provides substantial, nutritional, portable foods to students on Fridays for them to take home so they have food to eat over the weekend.
“It’s in our DNA and part of our values that we would support the community during the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Kevin Spradlin, Autonomous Activities Lead for Whirlpool Findlay Operations, who also worked on the donation. “We know that a plant like ours provides not only jobs, but provides a lifeline in the form of tax dollars, economic benefits, and overall support to the surrounding community, and always will.”
Without the Feed-A-Child program, some students would not otherwise receive the nutrition they need.
“When our Community calls, we answer,” said Quick. “We don’t see it as an obligation to help, but a privilege. For me, this was also personal. My children attend Hancock County Schools. We want to support their peers and the families that live in this community, and could never imagine letting a child go hungry. I feel privileged to work at Whirlpool, which is such a strong community supporter.”
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