What do you see when you look inside your refrigerator or pantry? If you’re like most people, you’ll see shelves stocked with food and an endless combination of ingredients perfect for throwing a good meal together… and yet, find yourself complaining, “There’s nothing to eat!”
What if your shelves were empty? Like Old-Mother-Hubbard-bare? It’s a sad reality that many in our community face daily. People seeking food may be homeless, living at shelters or simply struggling families. There is no face to hunger. It can be found everywhere.
At Newport Avenue Market, every day we are grateful to be living in a time of tremendous abundance. One of the best ways to show gratitude for what we have is by giving back to our community. It’s a core belief we have stood by and championed for almost four decades. We are especially passionate about feeding the hungry in our community. In our minds, no one should ever have to experience the pangs of hunger.
We are thrilled to announce that this year, our annual Go Golf! Tournament at Broken Top Golf Club raised $46,185 to feed hungry families in our community.
One of the largest charitable golf tournaments in Central Oregon, the Go Golf! Tournament has raised over $342,000 since it became a charity in 2007. That’s a lot of full bellies, happy smiles and hope.
With the help of 150 community members and influential leaders from the grocery and retail industry, as well as the generosity of this year’s Go Golf! participants and sponsors, 100% of the proceeds from this year’s tournament went straight to the Hunger Prevention Coalition of Central Oregon.
As our fearless leader Lauren puts it, “I am continually amazed by the support we receive from our amazing sponsors, participants and volunteers. This tournament allows us to stay true to our family philosophy at Newport Avenue Market – – – no matter the person’s situation, everyone deserves a meal.”
The Hunger Prevention Coalition was formed in 2000 by a group of local citizens concerned about the lack of nutritious foods available through local agencies who feed those in need. They provide funds to over 15 local non-profit agencies to purchase meats, healthy proteins, vegetables, milk, and other nutritious foods. The Hunger Prevention Coalition is also behind the “Help Fill Empty Plates” program to help eliminate hunger in the Central Oregon community.
We can’t say it enough – – – NO ONE should ever go hungry when we live in a community of plenty.
Playing a round of golf to feed hungry people? Yeah… that’s how Bend rolls. We’d like to give a big shout out to all of those who participated in this year’s Go Golf! Tournament, including Newport’s own employees who donated their time, energy and good vibes to help make things run smoothly.
There is no better feeling than contributing to a community in need. Thank you!