Enterprise in Your Community
Data Mining team helps area food bank
When searching for a community volunteer event, the Data Mining team looked for an opportunity that would appeal to the entire department and have maximum impact on the St. Louis area. What they found was the St. Louis Area Foodbank, a nonprofit center responsible for gathering and distributing nearly 13.4 million pounds of food each year to organizations in 14 counties in eastern Missouri and 12 counties in southwestern Illinois.
On Sept. 5, 18 members of the Data Mining department along with Department Manager of Decision Support Jeff Roderick, spent the afternoon at the food bank sorting donations from Wal–Mart into boxes for distribution to food pantries. In total, the team processed 7,878 pounds of food and prepared 262 boxes for distribution, an amount that ultimately provided 6,431 meals.
During the month leading up to their volunteer service, the team held a food drive that generated 80 pounds of food, which the volunteers donated the day of the event.
“Between the food drive and packing boxes at the warehouse, the whole department participated,” says Data Mining Senior Manager Lisa Breeden. “It was a really fun way to give back to the community – in fact, we've signed up to go back again next September.”
For more information about the St. Louis Area Foodbank, visit stlfoodbank.org.
