Food bank benefits from legal community's generosity

GAINESVILLE - Georgia Mountain Food Bank (GMFB) thanks the north Georgia legal community for participating in the 2013 Georgia Legal Food Frenzy.

The Georgia Legal Food Frenzy asks Georgia lawyers to challenge each other outside the courtroom during the statewide food drive benefitting the State's seven regional food banks. The drive accepted both monetary and food donations. A total of 249 law firms and legal organizations representing 14,000 employees in 47 cities competed in the 2013 Georgia Legal Food Frenzy.

GMFB had 19 firms in Hall County and Forsyth County participate in this year's Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, a 46 percent increase from 2012. Stewart, Melvin & Frost, LLP, collected the largest monetary and food donation for GMFB. In total, local law firms raised more than $9,000 and collected more than 1,687 pounds of food to help to provide more than 47,200 meals to those in need throughout the five county service area of GMFB.

"We are beyond grateful for the support of the legal community both locally and statewide," said Kay Blackstock, executive director of Georgia Mountain Food Bank. "We saw a 39 percent increase in the amount of funds raised for GMFB during this year's Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, which will help to provide food for our region. The involvement of law firms in the north Georgia area reaffirms the giving nature of our community and the importance of ending hunger in Georgia."

Georgia's seven regional food banks work with more than 2,300 partner agencies and pantries to distribute over 90 million pounds of food annually to all 159 counties in Georgia. All of the food collected has been donated directly to the regional food bank that serves each competitor's community. Georgia Mountain Food Bank serves partner agencies in Dawson, Forsyth, Hall, Lumpkin and Union counties.

"Due to the generosity of lawyers statewide, we not only met, but substantially exceeded our goal of raising 750,000 pounds of food for our regional food banks. Georgia lawyers have once again demonstrated a strong commitment to the less fortunate in their communities," said Attorney General Sam Olens.

The Georgia Legal Food Frenzy was specifically timed to coincide with Law Day and the end of the school year to help the food banks prepare for the summer. During the summer months, the demand for food increases because children who depend on free or reduced school lunches are at home. Nearly 60 percent of Georgia's public school students are eligible for either a free or reduced lunch each day.

"On behalf of the Georgia Food Bank Association, I want to express our deep gratitude to the legal community across the State for their support of the Legal Food Frenzy," said Danah Craft, Executive Director of Georgia Food Bank Association. "The food and funds donated during this competition will provide more than 700,000 additional meals to families who need food assistance during the summer months."

The following local lawyers participated in the 2013 Legal Food Frenzy: