Dr. Rohini Anand, Ph.D

Sodexo’s annual Servathon brings together thousands of Sodexo employees to raise money, donate food, and serve meals in their local communities. This year I had the opportunity to participate in three very different Servathon events.  I joined Sodexo employees in Seattle at the Food Lifeline Food bank to pack cartons of corn – in one afternoon we packed over 77,000 lbs. of corn, a new record for the food bank! 

During that event I had the opportunity to meet Blaine Hirai, our partner from Hirai Farms, who donates over 1 Million pounds of locally grown produce every year. Most recently he donated 22,000 lbs. of potatoes to the Manna Food bank in Maryland.  Blaine also oversees the non-profit organization “Annie’s Fun” which was named for his mother and seeks to help those in need.  Annie’s Fun, in partnership with Sodexo, packed and donated 5 million pounds of food and rose over $100,000 for hunger relief.  Blaine, you are truly a champion for the hungry and it is an honor doing business with you! 

While I was in Seattle, the Sodexo Office of Diversity team was hosting its own Servathon event – a mini-food drive! While our office may not have a lot of people, everyone contributed and we were able to make a huge impact.  In just three days we compiled nearly 200 kid-friendly food items! 

The Sodexo Diversity & Inclusion team volunteering during Sodexo Servathon. Click on the photograph for a slide show of this worthwhile and rewarding event.

Most recently, the Office of Diversity team along with the Office of Sustainability joined forces with Women Who Care, a non-profit organization dedicated to helping those in need overcome hunger, domestic violence, homelessness and substance abuse. The Sodexo team spent a morning packing over 1,000 backpacks of food for local children at risk of hunger on the weekends. It was fantastic to step outside of our normal routine and make a contribution to the larger community.  Special thanks to Judith Clark and the Women Who Care staff for making our visit so memorable and impactful – you do amazing work and we were proud to be a part of it for the day!

Giving back to the communities we serve is so important – I am proud to be part of an organization that supports and encourages involvement at all levels in the fight against hunger!        

Dr. Rohini Anand is the senior vice president and global chief diversity officer at Sodexo.

I will...

Most of us want to help when we see or hear of people in need, but often we simply feel too overwhelmed. This is especially true when considering the issue of hunger in America where 49 million people – 16 million children, are not always sure about where their next meal will come from. We don’t feel like we can possibly make a dent in what seems like an insurmountable problem. The fact is, none of us can do it all alone, but together even the smallest of individual efforts done in collaboration with others can be a tremendous force for change.

But, where do you start? It all begins with just two simple words: “I will…” That’s exactly how Sodexo is encouraging action this month.

Every April, Sodexo holds its annual Servathon event, which engages employees, clients, vendors and customers to volunteer time effort and expertise tackling hunger in their local communities and holding fundraisers to support area hunger-releif organizations. For 2012 it kicked off its “I will…” campaign, asking 125,000 employees in North America to make a simple statement about what they will do for Servathon and then post it to the company’s STOP Hunger database.

For every statement that is posted to the STOP Hunger database French’s Foodservice, a longtime vendor partner to Sodexo, is donating $5 to Sodexo Foundation – up to $5,000 to help end childhood hunger in America.  In addition the supplier is also donating up to an additional $10,000 to Sodexo Foundation when Sodexo client sites order preselected French’s products between March 1 and April 30, 2012.

“I will” has been extremely successful in engaging a great number of pledges for Servathon. Here is a very small sample of the many that have already been submitted:

I will provide after-school snacks to school-aged children. – Frances

I will recruit 10 employees to enroll in payroll deductions. – Charmion

I will donate non-perishables to my local food pantry. – Allyson

I will coordinate a food drive and collect $32,000 lbs of food and raise $4,500. – Jonathan

I will sort and repackage food at a food bank. – Bob

            I will double my payroll giving to Sodexo Foundation. – Shondra

Sodexo employees continue to make “I will” statements in support of Servathon every day. For anyone reading this post that hasn’t already made and posted a commitment, I hope this inspires you to do so today.

Imagine the force of will and the impact of 125,000 Sodexo employees in North America or 413,000 Sodexo employees worldwide in 80 countries working to beat hunger. Post something today. I will. Will you?

Robert A. Stern is senior vice president and general counsel for Sodexo, Inc. and president of the Sodexo Foundation, which supports innovative programs to help children and families in the United States who are at-risk of hunger. 

For pictures of Julia's work, click here.

I felt so honored to be selected by Sodexo as one of its eight 2011 Heroes of Everyday Life® for my volunteer work. In return, my husband and I were able to travel to Washington, DC to share my experience with fellow colleagues and politicians alike. The entire experience blew us away. A high point of the trip was having a chance to visit Capitol Hill and share our stories of fighting hunger in our communities with our senate and congressional leaders.

The main event, the 12^th Annual Sodexo Foundation Dinner, was nothing short of phenomenal. It was amazing to hear the stories of all the Sodexo Heroes of Everyday Life® and the Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship recipients, and how they are giving back to their communities. I was humbled by the generosity of all the vendors that donate to Sodexo Foundation. With their help, the foundation raised $1 million dollars to fight hunger in that one evening.

It was a great feeling to be up on stage and recognized in front of more than 930 people, but I would like to think of the award as an acknowledgement of the hard work done by volunteers at the Voice of Hope – an organization that provides the children of West Dallas with spiritual guidance and family support services including the delivery of food boxes. Of course, the greatest part of the entire experience is that the $5,000 grant I received will go to the hunger organization of my choice. I’m excited to say that it will go to the Voice of Hope.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQeC9QqiD04

The need for support provided by the Voice of Hope in West Dallas is ongoing, and this grant provides countless nutritious meals for youth and their families in that community.

I would like to thank Sodexo Foundation for this grant which will go a long way in fighting hunger in the West Dallas community. I feel honored to be a part of Sodexo’s STOP Hunger Initiative, and now that the nomination period is open for 2012 Heroes of Every Day Life, I encourage managers, friends and family members to turn the spotlight onto the work of new Sodexo Heroes. So many are doing so much to feed our children and their work is also worthy of recognition.

Julia Pipkins is senior instructional designer for Sodexo University. She has helped over 700 low-income families through her own initiative and her work with the Voice of Hope.. If you know of a Sodexo employee doing amazing work in fighting hunger, they could be chosen to be one of Sodexo’s Heroes of Everyday Life®. Click here for more information.

We were really happy when we found out we won the Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship last year. We were literally in shock and could not stop smiling!

The money we won for Bake Me Home will help us expand to help more families. The money we won for college makes us really proud that we are helping add to our college account when we are only ten.

If you’re making a difference helping hungry people in your community, tell the Sodexo Foundation about it. You could be selected as one of this year’s national STOP Hunger Scholars.  

Now is the time to apply! Your local charity will get a $5,000 grant and you’ll get to put the same amount away for college. Don’t wait – the application deadline is December 5, 2011!

PS: Watch us on YouTube! We might only be ten, but we plan to keep running Bake Me Home with our kids when we grow up.

Amy & Emma are 2011 Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship award winners.

Bob Stern, president of the Sodexo Foundation

A few weeks ago I attended the 2011 Conference of Leaders in Baltimore, hosted by Share Our Strength. I met a lot of extremely motivated individuals in the fight against hunger.  It was particularly gratifying to see Sodexo Chef Robert Murnan presented with an award for his outstanding work and leadership with Cooking Matters Omaha.

During the conference I also had an opportunity to preview a collaborative effort by Share Our Strength and YSA (Youth Service America) to develop a new online youth action center dubbed No Kid Hungry 2. It was developed with funding provided by the Sodexo Foundation and debuts on the first anniversary of No Kid Hungry. The site, which goes live today at NoKidHungry2.org, aims to engage youth in the national anti-hunger movement by encouraging and educating a new generation of passionate and dedicated young leaders who will advocate for this cause among their school peers and friends. 

No Kid Hungry 2 is feature and resource-rich, with two main sections: Kids Kick Hunger for those under 13 years old and Leaders Tackle Hunger for ages 13 and above. Age-appropriate content and resources will be posted to each section, enabling young people to organize volunteer activities, launch advocacy efforts and raise awareness in their schools and local neighborhoods about childhood hunger in America.

A look at the new nokidhungry2.org website. Click on the picture to check it out.

The site’s integration of social media tools offers powerful means for connecting young people all over the U.S., while also providing them with the ideas and resources they need to be effective change agents in their own communities. I like to think of No Kid Hungry 2 as a “brain trust of youth hunger champions.”

In opening his speech at Conference of Leaders, Share Our Strength chairman and CEO, Billy Shore used a humorous anecdote about his six year old son warning a fellow beach toddler about the temporal nature of sand castles, observing that they are never there in the morning. Shore went on to tell the audience that unlike those unsustainable structures, Share Our Strength, with the help of its many supporters, has put into place a solid foundation built around multiple platforms guaranteeing that its work and efforts will endure well beyond the next sunrise.

No Kid Hungry 2 is just one such platform upon which the work of fighting childhood hunger will advance. It will be instrumental in helping bring food to, as Shore put it, “the most vulnerable and the least responsible for the position they are in” – children.

Please share the link for No Kid Hungry 2 and empower the young people in your life to uplift their peers.

Robert A. Stern is senior vice president and general counsel for Sodexo, Inc. and president of the Sodexo Foundation, which supports innovative programs to help children and families in the United States who are at-risk of hunger. 

I was recently on the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, on the Kenya-Somalia border.  As you know, the Horn of Africa is experiencing the region’s worst drought in sixty years.  More than 450,000 have trekked for days and weeks across the desert seeking food, water, shelter, and safety in Dabaab.  I met women who had buried children who died on the journey and men whose entire livelihoods have been wiped away by the drought. 

Several younger members of the world’s largest refugee camp, Dadaab, on the Kenya-Somalia border. Click on the picture for more photographs courtesy Alliance to End Hunger

Here at home, the USDA reported that, for the third consecutive year, 1 in 6 Americans live in households that are food insecure.  Among the nearly 49 million Americans facing hunger are more than 16 million children.   

For those of us who want to help, it’s tough to know where to start and it’s easy to get discouraged.  That’s how I felt during my first years in Congress.  I decided early on that I wanted to make ending hunger my number one issue.  People thought I was crazy – they didn’t think there was any hope for ending hunger and couldn’t understand why I wanted to spend my time working on it.  Their doubts would rub off on me and I began to wonder whether or not I could really make a difference. 

Then I had a conversation that totally changed my perspective.  I was in India and had a chance to meet Mother Teresa.  We were walking through the streets of Calcutta and she was stopping to care for people along the side of the road.  I said to her, “What can I possibly do to help end hunger around the world?  I can’t even help the hungry people on this street!”  Mother Teresa didn’t respond right away.  After a few minutes she said, “Tony, you just need to do the thing that’s in front of you.  No more, no less.” 

I know that many of you are deeply concerned about hungry people here in the US and around the world.   If you are looking for ways to help, there are practical, effective steps you can take:  contribute to organizations fighting hunger and poverty, donate canned goods to your local food pantry, or even contact your Members of Congress and let them know that you care about these issues.

I hope that Mother Teresa’s words encourage you, just like they encouraged me, to “do the thing that’s in front of you.”

Ambassador Tony Hall represented the people of Dayton, Ohio, for 24 years in the U.S. House of Representatives.  He also served as the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Agencies for Food and Agriculture.  Ambassador Hall is the executive director of the Alliance to End Hunger, an organization that engages diverse institutions – corporations, nonprofits, faith-based organizations, and universities – in building the will to end hunger at home and abroad.  Sodexo is a Founding Member of the Alliance to End Hunger.

Make a difference: Click the photograph above to 'Like' the Oneida Facebook Page!

On June 6, 2010, I had the opportunity to attend the Annual Sodexo Foundation dinner, held in the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, DC.  It was my first experience with this dinner.  It was also my first exposure to both the many great activities the Sodexo Foundation organizes, and those programs created by individuals throughout the United States.   During the introductory presentations they shared interesting information about how the foundation got started and its vision for the future.  This helped me gain a greater understanding and appreciation for the culture within Sodexo.

During the dinner, Sodexo management recognized the efforts of several individuals who developed programs in their local communities, helping feed the hungry.  They shared the touching stories of how these children and adults decided to take action, and the incredible impact they had on others in need. They recognized six children, ages 5 to 19, who created special programs.   It was inspiring to see these young individuals spending time to make life better for others.  They were able to do so much with very few resources.  These students did not set out to gain recognition, but it was wonderful to see them rewarded for their good work.  The Sodexo Foundation made an impact in their lives with the awarding of a $5,000 Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship for the individual and a $5,000 matching grants for each of their hunger-related charities of choice.

The Heroes of Everyday Life program was also heart warming.  The company encourages all their employees to find ways to help fight hunger in their local communities.  Every year at this dinner, they recognize about 8 employees that they feel have really exemplified the strongest acts of giving.  They shared the individual stories of these employees and the type of impact they have made on fighting hunger.  It’s very humbling to hear what they were able to accomplish.  The recipients were extremely proud and happy to accept the grants for their local charities.

During the presentation, they shared some incredible statistics; including one in every four children in America is at risk of hunger.  I have three children of my own and everyday have at least four children in my home.  The thought that one of them could go to bed hungry really made me stop and think.   I walked away from this dinner with a huge appreciation for Sodexo and the Sodexo Foundation.  I found myself proud to have Oneida Ltd. associated with such a company.  I also wanted to find a way for Oneida to be involved in supporting this foundation and the individuals it helps everyday. 

I helped put together a program that would not only contribute to the Sodexo Foundation, but would also build sales for Oneida.  I presented to our upper management and they were immediately supportive of the idea.  Oneida committed to donating 2% of sales from our luxury and fine dining products that were sold to Sodexo business units through Edward Don, our distributor.  Our sales team, Edward Don’s sales team, and the Hunger Champion’s at Sodexo all did a great job communicating the program to help impact the results. All parties were pleased with the results of the first year of this program.

We are now very excited to kick off our second year of this program, and have moved up the date to start in September, Hunger Action Month.  We are adding a social media component thru Facebook and Twitter.  On Facebook, we will add to our total donation, $1 for every new Oneida Ltd Fan from 9/12/11 – 10/12/11, with a goal of gaining 1,000 new fans.  Fans can also donate directly to the Sodexo Foundation while on the Oneida Ltd Facebook page through a special app. Please help us make this 1,000 new fan goal a reality – click here!

Jim Schulze is senior vice president of sales for Oneida Global Foodservice.

Check out more "Bake Me Home" pictures by clicking on the above photograph.

Amy:    I was really happy when I found out we won the Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship!  I said “Wooooowwww,” when Sarah from Sodexo gave us the giant check at one of our jar filling activities.

Emma: I was stunned! I was literally in shock. I could not stop smiling!  The money we won for Bake Me Home will help us expand to help more families. The money we won for college makes us really proud that we are helping add to our college account when we are only ten. But, at the award ceremony, I was a little nervous.

Amy:    I thought it was really cool to be up there in front of almost a thousand people and get to talk too!  Our mom said not many adults would want to do that!  They got a few new catch phrases out of our video too — whenever they have a problem at Sodexo they can just say, “Let me think…” 

Emma:  Up on stage while we watched the video, all we thought was wow, what a wonderful job they did on it, and how much we love it, and how great the people working at Sodexo really are.

Amy:    We really thought Julia Pipkins’ story was super cool. How getting that box of groceries in her door as a kid changed her life and inspired her to grow up and help other hungry people.  Wouldn’t it be cool if something like that happened with a kid who got one of our Tote Bags — if they grew up to be like Julia!

Amy:    We are happy to say that the Sodexo Foundation has inspired us to create our own awards where kids write in and tell us about what they did to help an organization that helps kids. We will pick two winners at the end of the summer who will each win $100 for a charity they pick. We hope one day we can grow it to even more money!  A big part of our mission is getting other kids to volunteer, so we think this is a good idea. There is more information about our Bake Me Home Summer Service Grants on our website www.bakemehome.com.

Emma: Thank you to Sodexo and Mr. Brady’s family (we loved meeting Pascale and her daughters) for a great trip to Washington DC.  We promise to try and do lots of good with the money you gave us!

Amy and Emma Bushman are the founders of Bake Me Home. Their organization now has more than 100 volunteers helping more than 200 families each year.

The Heroes of Everyday Life Award entailed a four-day event and allowed for an invited guest to accompany each Hero.

Day 1- was a meet-n-greet with the other Sodexo Heroes and an orientation to events about to unfold over the next three days. It was a great ice breaker and we met several of the key staff coordinating this experience.

Day 2 – was a top notch – “2^nd: to none day!” It started with meeting several key members of the Sodexo’s PR, Community Relations and Government Affairs teams. They were our escorts for the day.

We then went to the U.S. Capitol Building for an all day tour, to include the House and Senate sides of the Capitol Building. Typically when touring the whole Capitol Building complex you exit the building to get to the other office buildings – House or Senate side. Our escorts, however, scored us access to the transportation train that runs in the basement of the Capitol. This train is off limits to the general public and is mostly used for congressional staff only. It was rather cool walking the tunnels and riding the train with our country’s leaders. I walked right by one from my home state – Senator Toomey, from Pennsylvania!

We also ate in one of the congressional staff only cafeterias. Once again, this area is not for the general public so I felt rather privileged to be dining among our legislators!

But, the best part of the day was meeting with our home state senators (Senator Casey on my visit) or their staff person and telling them our stories and about all of the positive things that Sodexo does in local communities.

That evening we had dinner with Board members of the Sodexo Foundation and met the Stephen J. Brady STOP Hunger Scholarship recipients. These students were just awesome. The things that they are doing for the cause at such a young age are truly remarkable.

Day 3 –was the day of the Foundation Dinner. It was attended by more than 930 people and raised $1 million for the Sodexo Foundation. The evening was filled with powerful stories about fighting hunger.

Day 4 – allowed time for reflection before heading home. Taking it all in, I had a renewed appreciation for each honoree and the work that the Sodexo Foundation does on a daily basis. I was inspired to do more!

In addition to being publically recognized at the dinner, Heroes were awarded a $5,000 check for the hunger relief charity of their choice.  I will present mine to North Hills Community Outreach (NHCO) at its August 2011 Board Meeting. NHCO will use the grant to cover operating costs for their two food pantries. Its pantries serve about 1,200 low-income families every year.

Ryan Wilson is a Sodexo General Manager for the Beaver Area School District in Pennsylvania. His food drives and donations have provided more than 54,000 meals to families and children in his community.

Frances Williams, one of Sodexo’s 2011 Heroes of Everyday Life®

Having an opportunity to travel to Washington D.C. where I was honored as one of Sodexo’s Heroes of Everyday Life® was a wonderful experience for me, as well as my mother who I invited along for the trip. I want to begin, however, by personally expressing my gratitude toward Sodexo and all of the people that have supported my initiative from the very beginning.  Without that support I would not be able to do what needs to be done for the thousands who are benefiting from volunteer efforts like mine.

What a great honor it has been to be recognized by the Sodexo Foundation for the work I do beyond my paid responsibilities.  Even as we were being recognized by some very distinguished individuals, it was such a humbling experience just to be in the midst of everyday people who think of others and act on their thoughts.  I have learned a lot from that experience and will hold it dear to my heart as I continue to grow with Sodexo.

The grant which was awarded to my Do Over Ministry will go a long way to help thousands of individuals as I plan to expand my resources and reach many more people in need using the finances provided.  One of many ways it will help is through an effort that will take place around the end of August, where we will be able to provide uniforms, book bags, school supplies, and after school snacks to approximately 75 school children.

My gratitude cannot be overstated for having the opportunity to work with such a caring company and for it to not only recognize, but to encourage my passion for providing for those less advantaged.

I was proud that my mother could be there with me on the evening of the awards presentation at the 12^th Annual Sodexo Foundation Dinner. Yes, I invited her. But, she – through her example – got me there.

Frances Williams is a Sodexo Cook at PNC Bank and is the founder of Do Over Ministry, which offers clothing, career guidance, education and nutritional counseling in Philadelphia communities.