Friday, May 22, 2009
Law firms help stock Virginia food banks
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JoAnne Poindexter
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The Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest Food Bank garnered more than 76,792 pounds of food during the third annual Legal Food Frenzy food drive.
The food drive, sponsored by the Virginia attorney general's office, broke previous records and collected the equivalent of more than 1.6 million pounds of food at seven food banks in the state.
The competition pitted law firms against one another to help feed the hungry and to beat its goal of 1.5 million pounds.
The Richmond firm Schettine & Nguyen raised the most food per capita and won the Attorney General's Cup for the second year in a row. The firm has 12 employees and collected almost 8,141 pounds of food per capita.
State Attorney General Bill Mims will give a presentation on the popular food-and-funds drive during the June meeting of the National Association of Attorneys General to lay the groundwork for a nationwide effort.
"This is beyond our expectations. Food Banks are experiencing an historic surge in demand for assistance. Law firms throughout the Commonwealth heard our call. The collaboration of the Attorney General's Office, Virginia Bar Association and food banks truly has made a difference for those in need throughout Virginia," said Leslie Van Horn, executive director of the Federation of Virginia Food Banks, in a news item on the attorney general's office Web site.
Former Attorney General Bob McDonnell started the Legal Food Frenzy, which runs during a traditionally slow period for food bank donations. It also is the first statewide food drive in the history of the Federation of Virginia Food Banks.
The contest ran March 30 through April 10, and 216 law firms participated, up from 181 last year, when more than 1.3 million pounds of food were donated.
"Our third annual 'Legal Food Frenzy' brought out the best in the legal community, as we competed together to raise food for the hungry," Mims said on the Web site. "It has been an honor to travel across the Commonwealth and see the Bar Association and the Food Banks serving Virginians in these dire economic times. I was gratified by the outpouring of generosity."
Southwestern Virginia Second Harvest Food Bank in Salem received the fourth-largest donation of food. The food bank serves more than 350 partner programs in a 26-county and 10-city region.
The Southwestern Virginia winning offices included LeClair Ryan's Blacksburg office, which won the per capita award for collecting 892.33 pounds per employee. Woods Rogers in Roanoke earned the large firm award for collecting about 17,425 pounds.
The Roanoke LeClair Ryan office won for medium-sized firms with 25,900 pounds, and the firm's Blacksburg office won for small firms with 9,815 pounds.
