Published February 10, 2016
Miami Dolphins players and employee volunteers from UnitedHealthcare are staffing a Feeding South Florida Mobile Food Pantry. The project is the culmination of the third annual Sack Hunger campaign, in which UnitedHealthcare donated 60,000 meals to Feeding South Florida for the 31 sacks made by the Dolphins defense during the 2015 season.
"I know how important the services of Feeding South Florida are in this community, and I'm excited to partner with UnitedHealthcare as part of the Sack Hunger campaign," said Jelani Jenkins, Miami Dolphins linebacker and campaign spokesman.
Feeding South Florida's Mobile Food Pantry program gives individuals and families access to fresh fruits, vegetables, dairy products and breads that are vital to maintaining a proper diet. The mobile pantry enables Feeding South Florida to bring fresh produce into areas deemed 'food deserts.' A food desert is an area where a majority of the residents have limited access to large retail stores with fresh food and grocery products.
The mobile food pantry is at the Networking for Christ Ministry, 6122 Washington St. in Hollywood. The Networking for Christ Ministry is a partner agency of Feeding South Florida. The event is expected to feed 300 families.
"This donation enables us to provide food items and fresh produce to the working families, children and older adults who are in need of food assistance," said Paco Vélez, president and CEO, Feeding South Florida.
"Access to fresh, nutritious food is an important part of people's health and well-being. We are grateful for the opportunity to work with the Miami Dolphins to help build healthier communities in South Florida," said Nicholas Zaffiris, CEO, UnitedHealthcare of South Florida.
This project is the latest in UnitedHealthcare's "Do Good. Live Well." program, an employee-volunteer initiative aimed at preventing hunger and obesity, inspire service and encourage volunteerism. For more information about the benefits of volunteering and to find local opportunities to get involved, visit www.DoGoodLiveWell.org. Follow @DoGoodLiveWell on Twitter or "like" Do Good. Live Well. on Facebook.
UnitedHealthcare serves more than 3.4 million people in Florida with a network of 255 hospitals and other health facilities and more than 43,500 physicians and other care providers statewide.
Feeding South Florida's mission is to end hunger in South Florida by providing immediate access to nutritious food, leading hunger and poverty advocacy efforts, and transforming lives through innovative programming and education. Feeding South Florida™ is one of 200 member food banks in the Feeding America™ network, the sole Feeding America food bank in South Florida, and the largest food bank in the state, serving 25% of the state's food insecure population. Through a local network of approximately 360 nonprofit partner agencies, Feeding South Florida distributes 40 million pounds of food annually, serving 785,040 individuals in need of food assistance, 280,630 of whom are children, and 150,000 are older adults, throughout Palm Beach, Broward, Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties. For more information, visit www.feedingsouthflorida.org or call 954.518.1818.
UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people nationwide live healthier lives by simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care providers. The company offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers, military service members, retirees and their families, and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and contracts directly with 1 million physicians and care professionals, and 6,000 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide. UnitedHealthcare is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), a diversified Fortune 50 health and well-being company. For more information, visit UnitedHealthcare at www.uhc.com or follow @myUHC on Twitter.