Ozarks Food Harvest garners $70K via Wal-Mart fundraiser

Last edited 12:55 p.m., June 22, 2015

Ozarks Food Harvest is set to receive roughly $70,000 from a Wal-Mart Stores Inc. fundraiser.

Through the funding, the local food bank can provide approximately 350,000 in meals to families across the Ozarks, according to a news release.

Wal-Mart raised funds in April through its social media campaign #WeSparkChange, donations made at its registers and certain product purchases.

“Campaigns like this are critical to our collective ability to raise awareness about the issue of hunger, to secure more local funds and, ultimately, serve more people in need in the Ozarks,” Ozarks Food Harvest President and CEO Bart Brown said in the release.

This spring marks the 10th year Wal-Mart has partnered with the Feeding America network of food banks – which includes Ozarks Food Harvest, according to the release.

The campaign raises $10.7 million nationwide for Feeding America, said Ozarks Food Harvest spokeswoman Heather Hardinger.

Ozarks Food Harvest serves 200 organizations across 28 Ozarks counties that distribute over 13 million meals annually to 260,000 individuals.