For the fifth consecutive year, Citizens has joined forces with Feeding America®, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, contributing more than $1 million as a Leadership-level partner to further broaden and deepen its efforts to help fight hunger.
The renewed relationship builds on a successful four-year partnership which has brought funding into local markets and seeded Feeding America’s Ending Hunger program. This year’s funding is primarily categorized as equitable access grants, which aim to increase access to nutritious food among households with individuals who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) residing in communities experiencing high food insecurity rates.
“For millions of people in America, a daily meal isn’t a choice between different dishes. It’s often an impossible choice between food and other critical needs,” Bruce Van Saun, Chairman and CEO, Citizens Financial Group said in a statement.. “Our partnership with Feeding America helps to tackle the root causes of hunger and aims to increase the scale and impact of local food banks, particularly now, as our communities continue grappling with economic instability.”
In 2021, through the Citizens Helping Citizens Fight Hunger initiative, the bank helped provide 16.3 million meals* via its partnership with Feeding America and other local hunger relief organizations. Citizens colleagues volunteered nearly 90,000 hours to help combat hunger in communities across the bank’s enterprise.
In Rhode Island, Citizens has contributed a total of $100,000 to Rhode Island Community Food Bank, which distributes food through its statewide network of 150 member agencies serving more than 54,000 people a month. The food bank will use the funds to acquire and distribute millions of pounds of food to provide hunger relief to low-income individuals and families in Rhode Island.
“Thousands of Rhode Islanders are struggling to make ends meet given the high costs of food and fuel,” said RI Community Food Bank CEO Andrew Schiff. “The Food Bank is grateful for the generous support of Citizens this Hunger Action Month, which will help us reach our goal of providing 15 million pounds of healthy food to Rhode Islanders in need this year.”
As part of Hunger Action Month, Citizens colleagues will display their commitment to fighting hunger by participating in Citizens’ Step Up to Fight Hunger challenge in which colleagues’ healthy activities and steps are translated into meals to support local communities¬¬.
Citizens Helping Citizens Fight Hunger is part of the bank’s broader Citizens Helping Citizens program, which addresses three key areas: hunger, financial empowerment, and strengthening the communities it serves. It is rooted in the belief that when people and communities reach their potential, we all thrive. Get more information about Citizens community initiatives here.
*$1 helps Feeding America provide at least 10 meals through local member food banks.
About Citizens Financial Group, Inc.
Citizens Financial Group, Inc. is one of the nation’s oldest and largest financial institutions, with $226.7 billion in assets as of June 30, 2022. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens offers a broad range of retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutions. Citizens helps its customers reach their potential by listening to them and by understanding their needs in order to offer tailored advice, ideas and solutions. In Consumer Banking, Citizens provides an integrated experience that includes mobile and online banking, a full-service customer contact center and the convenience of approximately 3,300 ATMs and approximately 1,200 branches in 14 states and the District of Columbia. Consumer Banking products and services include a full range of banking, lending, savings, wealth management and small business offerings. In Commercial Banking, Citizens offers a broad complement of financial products and solutions, including lending and leasing, deposit and treasury management services, foreign exchange, interest rate and commodity risk management solutions, as well as loan syndication, corporate finance, merger and acquisition, and debt and equity capital markets capabilities. More information is available at www.citizensbank.com or visit us on Twitter, LinkedIn or Facebook.
About Feeding America
Feeding America® is the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States. Through a network of more than 200 food banks, 21 statewide food bank associations, and over 60,000 partner agencies, food pantries and meal programs, we helped provide 6.6 billion meals to tens of millions of people in need last year. Feeding America also supports programs that prevent food waste and improve food security among the people we serve; brings attention to the social and systemic barriers that contribute to food insecurity in our nation; and advocates for legislation that protects people from going hungry. Visit www.feedingamerica.org, find us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter.
About Rhode Island Community Food Bank
The Rhode Island Community Food Bank distributes food to more than 59,000 struggling Rhode Islanders each month, through a statewide network of 140 member agencies, including food pantries, meal sites, shelters, youth programs and senior centers. Last year, the Food Bank distributed 15.1 million pounds of food, of which approximately 2.5 million pounds was fresh produce. The Food Bank is a member of Feeding America, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization.