The only food bank in North Dakota, Great Plains Food Bank serves the entire state as well as Clay County, Minnesota. This Giving Hearts Day, they received support from the most North Dakota cities, landing them a Backyard & Beyond Award. Not only that, but they placed third in New Donor Growth and received a Donor Dynamo Award as a returning Giving Hearts Day participant with the highest number of individual donors. Much of their staff and board got involved in their campaign by donating, promoting the event on social media, and by making personal thank you calls. To say they have the support of the state they serve would be an understatement.

Check out this video created to promote their Giving Hearts Day campaign! 

The need for their services grew by 13% over the course of 2022, with 1 in 3 children being served. Their fundraising focus for Giving Hearts Day is on their programs that help children such as their backpack program, youth summer meals, and school pantry programs. The community has shown great support in ensuring that kids are being fed. 

In addition to their programs focused on kids, they deliver food across the service area through mobile pantry services, provide meals for seniors, provide SNAP outreach, assist with distributing food during times of disaster, and provide advocacy work at the state and national level to end hunger for good. Without the Great Plains Food Bank, this food would not be sourced or distributed, leaving our neighbors to go hungry.

This widespread work can’t be done alone. Great Plains Food Bank partners with 205 food pantries, shelters, and soup kitchens in 102 communities across North Dakota and Clay County, Minnesota, providing more than 11 million meals to 156,479 individuals in need annually. Roughly 80% of the food distributed by their network of food pantries comes from the Great Plains Food Bank.

Their team also advocates that there is a role for everyone to help address hunger relief, from volunteering at one of their repacking centers, to donating financially, to large commercial food donations. No matter how you choose to give, everyone can have a positive impact in feeding our hungry neighbors. 

GHD Awards are co-sponsored by Bush Foundation and Dakota Medical Foundation.