The 6th Annual End Hunger Games is now underway! Foodbank of Santa Barbara County warmly welcomes you to mercilessly crush our competition. Only one organization will receive the Golden Turkey—will it be Yardi? Yardi SB is Up for the Challenge The End Hunger Games is a creative winter campaign that adds a competitive edge to fundraising. Local organizations are encouraged to out-donate one another in three categories: Pounds of Food Nonperishable items are essential but there is also need for fresh produce Funds Raised Monetary donations are allocated to programs with the highest need Volunteer Hours Help to collect, sort, distribute and more! Volunteers are the backbone of the foodbank The most generous organization will win the coveted Golden Turkey and receive bragging rights as Santa Barbara’s fiercest giver. Yardi Santa Barbara has participated in every End Hunger Games competition since the competition started six years ago. Several times, Yardi has emerged as the victor! Yardi team members are encouraged to show their support for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. Yardi employees can click here for details on how to accrue points. Increasing Need for Food in Santa Barbara County Natural disasters, the closure of other foodbanks, and economic hardship have increased the need for supplemental food services in Santa Barbara County. The foodbank has opened three new locations to meet the growing demand. The newest location recently opened at St. George Community Church at 1032 E. Mason Street. This distribution center will serve the lower east side and west side of the county. The St. George location opened shortly after the Westside Neighborhood Center and Catholic Charities sites. (Foodbank SB distribution occurs in conjunction with regularly scheduled Catholic Charities distributions.) Within the first week of opening the new locations, the Foodbank served more than...

The End Hunger Games have been a Foodbank of Santa Barbara County tradition for five years. This winter holiday campaign adds a dose of friendly competition to local corporate philanthropy. Each year, 10-15 corporate teams compete to be crowned as the biggest givers. Yardi has participated in the End Hunger Games since its inception. “We use Yardi activities as examples to inspire the other teams to go above and beyond,” says Nathalie Keller, Corporate Giving Manager at the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County. “They have several teams within the company. They volunteer regularly, donate food, post on social channels, and plan events like their holiday boutique and company party to benefit the Foodbank.” Yardi emerged as the victor of the fifth annual End Hunger Games, followed closely by other fine local organizations: First place: Yardi – Total Points: 1466 Second place: Evidation Health  – Total points: 1457 Third place: FastSpring – Total Points: 1327 The vast outpouring of corporate support, coupled with donations from the community, could not have come at a better time. The Thomas Fire, one of the largest and costly in the state’s history, caused widespread dislocation and loss of property. For the Foodbank, the efforts to provide for daily community food needs were made even more challenging by this disaster. Keller explains, “Children and families experienced increased food insecurity during this time of crisis. Many were unable to work because businesses had shut down or reduced work hours during the emergency. This meant that hourly employees faced sudden loss of wages. Owners of businesses connected to tourism and recreation, along with service providers and vendors, experienced immediate loss of income.” As soon as the UCSB American Red Cross shelter opened, the Foodbank began providing food, water and snacks to evacuees. Two...

Members of the Yardi Marketing team gathered for a two-day conference in sunny Santa Barbara. As the conference drew to a close, the team celebrated with a volunteer service event at The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County (Foodbank SBC). Foodbank SBC is moving the community from hunger to health. The organization is “not only feeding but teaching how to fish.” Leslie Velez, Development Coordinator, explained, “Our motto means that the Foodbank helps clients move beyond a state of food insecurity through education and resources. With many of our programs, food distribution is offered alongside nutrition education, cooking instruction, exercise classes, and connection to support services like CalFresh and blood sugar testing. We want clients to have the tools they need to live healthy lives.” Foodbank SBC first works to ensure that clients have access to enough healthy food to feed a family. Of 10 million pounds of food distributed each year, half is fresh produce donated by groceries and local farms and gleaned from people’s homes. To continue the fishing metaphor, the organization has also created “the net,” a network of partners. Members include gardeners, many of who are Master Gardeners, who teach gardening classes year-round. Budgeting classes are led by a partner nonprofit to help people shop smart for food. The Foodbank also issues “fishing” tools, programs for growing food, preparing food, and using food in a way that improves food security. The Feed the Future initiative encompasses six educational programs geared towards youth and teens. Food Literacy in Preschool and Healthy School Pantry collaborate with local schools to promote access to fresh produce and provide an enhanced understanding of nutritional intake. Healthy School Pantry serves more than 8,000 clients. Kids Farmers Market gives kids an interactive experience with growing fruits and vegetables, selecting...

Millions of kids across the United States rely on school lunch as their affordable, nutritious daytime meal throughout the school year. But what happens when school is out? For many kids, hunger is a tragic condition associated with summer break. Foodbanks across the country are working to end summer hunger. The coordinated effort of nonprofit staff and volunteers serves millions of healthy meals all summer long at locations easily accessible to kids. Parks and playgrounds are prime locations to reach kids in need. Judith Smith-Meyer, marketing communications manager for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County describes the Picnic in the Park program, which served more than 30,000 lunches in 2017 to kids across the region. “Lunches always include vegetables, fruit, milk, protein and carbohydrates. We serve everything from chef salad, tuna salad, turkey and cheese sandwiches, to plums, apples, yogurt and hardboiled eggs,” said Judith. The lunch menu can often depend on what the Foodbank has in stock. However, the notoriously fickle taste buds of children can also play a big part in crafting the menu. “We found that in certain parks the kids really did not like tuna salad sandwiches. We were thankful for that feedback and switched tuna out for peanut butter and jelly the next time we were there. At another park, the kids were really not fond of Caesar salad dressing. Our local Walmart donated another type of dressing which we served the next time we were in that park, which was a lot more successful,” said Judith. Foodbank volunteers are strategic about when and where they plan lunch services to coincide with the financial needs of neighborhoods and to not overlap with similar programs run by other organizations. “This is a big county with a lot of varying demographics....

It’s that time of year again! Every November since 2009, Yardi has proudly participated in the Santa Barbara Foodbank’s annual Corporate Food & Funds Drive Challenge. By promoting friendly competition among local business, the corporate challenge is a chance to give back and support those in need during this holiday season and beyond. Every day, thousands of people turn to the Santa Barbara Foodbank for assistance. With a commitment to supplying nutritious foods that promote a healthy lifestyle, the Santa Barbara food bank helps one in four local residents keep their larders full and their tables set not just during the holidays, but throughout the year. Though the Foodbank receives a steady flow of donations year-round, events like the Corporate Food & Funds Drive Challenge guarantees the organization receives sufficient funds and resources to operate regardless of the season. Yardi has participated in the Corporate Food & Funds Drive Challenge from the beginning, and being part of this annual competition aligns with the company’s overall philosophy of giving back to the community. As part of the competition, over the next two months Yardi employees will work hard donating food, funds and volunteer hours in a bid to earn points that will be tallied against the efforts of the other challenge participants. Once the contest is completed, the Foodbank will use an employee-to-point ratio to crown the winner. Last year, the challenge collectively brought in over 24,000 pounds of food (including 266 turkeys), over 400 hours of service, and more than $47,000 in donations! Though Brown and Brown Insurance may have nabbed the title in the past, this time around, the Yardi team is ready to snag that top spot. “The competitive spirit is alive and well,” says event organizer Kelly Johnson, “and I think...