Special Event

Foodbank's 2015 fundraiser to include activities, auction

Gabriella Taylor (left) admires the work of face painter Shawna McGill at last year’s Drive Away Hunger event at the Arkansas Foodbank. The Saturday fundraiser includes activities for all ages.
Gabriella Taylor (left) admires the work of face painter Shawna McGill at last year’s Drive Away Hunger event at the Arkansas Foodbank. The Saturday fundraiser includes activities for all ages.

For years, the Arkansas Foodbank, which acquires and distributes food to hungry people in the community, has raised money and recruited new friends with its popular Empty Bowls spring fundraiser. But the event was missing a key ingredient: families.

An art auction and fancy dinner isn't exactly the perfect party to which to bring the kids, says Tyler Lindsey, marketing/PR director.

Drive Away Hunger

5-8 p.m. Saturday

Arkansas Foodbank, 4301 W. 65th St., Little Rock

Tickets: $30, children 12 and under free

(501) 565-8121

arkansasfoodbank.org

So, in 2014 the Foodbank started Drive Away Hunger, a party at the organization's headquarters with something for every age group. It was enough of a success that now the organization is gearing up for a second go-round on Saturday at the Foodbank's headquarters on West 65th Street.

"It's really a perfect event for families," Lindsey says.

There will be bounce houses for the children, along with face painting, games, a Wolfe at the Door puppet show, an Innovation Hub activity and the chance to get pictures taken in a Foodbank truck. Skylab Planetarium will set up an exhibit and put on shows inside.

For the grown-ups, there are beer tastings from local breweries Vino's, Stone's Throw, Arkansas Fermenters, Arkansas Craft Distributors and Golden Eagle of Arkansas. Planners hope to show the broadcast of the Razorbacks game, and The B-Flats will provide the music.

There's an auction, too, with items including a golf cart and a kids ride-along with North Little Rock Police Department Officer Tommy Norman.

Whole Hog will serve barbecue dinners. Because a general head count is needed in advance, people interested in attending should be sure to buy tickets ahead. Dinners for walk-ins will be limited in number.

Drive Away Hunger also serves another purpose. Empty Bowls was once held at Foodbank headquarters, but then it was moved to a more traditional banquet setting, depriving people of an easy, fun chance to see the facilities and see how their money was being spent.

"We wanted to make sure we continued an event each year on the grounds of our warehouse," Lindsey says. "This is a really great opportunity to get people involved, get them out to the Foodbank if they've never been here before, let them see the work that we do."

Visitors will have plenty of chances to explore because the party spreads out over the entire complex, with activities set up inside and outside. Everyone is encouraged to walk around and explore the 3-year-old building and the huge warehouse that ships out 61,000 pounds of food every day.

The hope is that people will learn more about what the Foodbank does, how it does it and how they can help. Opportunities for volunteers and donors are varied and fairly vast.

"We're really encouraging anyone who comes out to get involved in the fight against hunger," Lindsey says. "Arkansas is in the forefront of pretty much every ranking for hunger in the nation, so this is a great time for people to come out, get involved, learn about the mission of the Foodbank and see where they fit."

Weekend on 09/24/2015

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