During this summer, thousands of Arizona kids and their families worried about where their next meals were coming from. In response, United Food Bank hosted its sixth Summer of a Million Meals fundraiser campaign in partnership with 12News to assist families in need. The campaign ran from May 29 through Sept. 4 and raised over two million meals.

Children out of school on summer break are not able to receive their free, school-provided breakfast and lunch each day, creating a higher demand for food for families in need. Consequently, summer is a season in which food banks across the nation run low on resources.

“The Summer of a Million Meals campaign is one of our most important fundraisers and we were thrilled to continue our efforts with 12News,” said Jason Reed, president and CEO of United Food Bank. “Food insecurity is a year-round problem in Arizona, but the need increases over the summer months with children on break from school. We appreciate every cent the Arizona community donated to help us provide families with access to the meals they needed this past summer.”

Throughout the summer, United Food Bank hosted three giving telethon events with local celebrity guests on June 22, July 20 and Aug. 24. Arizonans were able to call in and make donations through the telethon events, online at azmillionmeals.org, or at any of the registers at Fry’s Food Stores or Meineke Car Care Center. In addition, 185 volunteers from local businesses donated their time to build 7,650 emergency food bags at these telethon events.

“12News is committed to making a positive impact on our community,” said President and 12News General Manager Kate Morris. “For five years we’ve been a proud partner of United Food Bank and the Summer of a Million Meals. With the help of our partners and our generous viewers we truly came together as neighbors to create a summer of abundance for all.”

Summer of a Millions Meals would not be possible without community sponsors including Fry’s Food Stores, Meineke Car Care Center, Wells Fargo, Amazon, Waymo, Pin Point Leak Detection, Toyota Financial Services, Organ Stop Pizza, Le Blanc Cleaning, Courtney Valley Wide, Vantage West, Home Sweet Loans, Waste Management, Lerner and Rowe, Lifetime Windows and Doors.

To learn more information about United Food Bank and how you can still make a difference in the community through donations or volunteering, please visit https://www.unitedfoodbank.org/.