Valley First Shatters 6,500 Pound Food Donation Target in Less Than Five Months

PENTICTON, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - June 14, 2012) - Valley First announced today that less than five months into its year-long Feed the Valley food drive, it has surpassed its 2012 target of 6,500 pounds in donations.

On Feb. 7, 2012, in recognition of its 65th anniversary, Valley First challenged its members and employees to donate 6,500 pounds of food to Feed the Valley by the end of the year. The Valley First branch that gathered the largest weight contribution toward this target committed to donating $6,500 to its local food bank.

In less than five months since laying down the challenge, Valley First has collected 6,865 pounds of food for food banks across the Okanagan, Similkameen and Thompson valleys. Leading the charge was Valley First's Armstrong branch which collected 1,950 pounds, netting $6,500 for the Armstrong Food Bank in the process.

"To collect almost 7,000 pounds in less than five months is a tremendous effort," says Valley First president Paulette Rennie. "Our members and employees responded to this friendly challenge with overwhelming enthusiasm. Their efforts have created a real win for the food banks in our region."

Last year, Feed the Valley was recognized as a leading corporate citizenship program when it received a Central 1 Credit Union inNOVAtion award. The good work being achieved by the Feed the Valley program has now started to be recognized beyond credit union circles.

"Over the last decade, food bank use in B.C.'s smaller communities has increased by more than 50 per cent," says Food Banks B.C. president Don Armstrong. "Even more significant is that 38 per cent of all food bank clients are children.

"The work Valley First is doing through Feed the Valley is simply tremendous. By committing to and achieving such lofty goals, Valley First is certainly making a real difference in the communities that need it most. I applaud and congratulate them for their outstanding efforts."

Since its creation in March 2010, Feed the Valley has raised more than $270,000 and collected more than 16,000 pounds of food donations for food banks throughout the Okanagan, Similkameen and Thompson regions. This sets Valley First well on the way to achieving its ambitious goal of raising $1 million by 2020.

Valley First is a division of First West Credit Union, B.C.'s third-largest credit union, which has 37 branches and 29 insurance offices throughout the Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley, Kitimat and Okanagan, Similkameen and Thompson valleys. First West has approximately $6.6 billion in assets under administration, more than 169,000 members and close to 1,400 employees.