City, state, and county officials are teaming up with CHOW and Binghamton University for the 2024 Downtown Thanksgiving Food Challenge.
The challenge asks community members and government employees to donate non-perishable foods to support local families in need.
All next week, donation barrels will be located at the Binghamton State and County Office buildings, Broome County Sheriff’s Office, Binghamton City Hall, University Downtown Center, and Koffman Incubator. Last year, almost 14,000 meals were donated to families in need.
“A report by the Department of Health at the beginning of the year said that one out of four Broome adults reported being food insecure in the last year. Another report by the State Council said that Broome County had the highest, the fastest growing child poverty rate in the state,” Director of CHOW Les Aylesworth said. “So when you take those two ideas together, it shows that we have a lot of folks aren’t getting ready for something and that’s what this is all about, to make sure those people get fed.”