Derek Slap

Sen Slap Kicks Off CT Foodshare’s Annual “Turkey and a Thirty” Campaign

BLOOMFIELD – State Senator Derek Slap (D-West Hartford) today joined Connecticut Foodshare President Jason Jakubowski, Lieutenant Governor Susan Bysiewicz and state Department of Agriculture Commissioner Bryan Hurlburt to kick off Foodshare’s annual “Turkey and Thirty” campaign, its annual tradition of raising food and funds to meet its goal of providing 50,000 Thanksgiving turkeys to Connecticut families this year.

Connecticut Foodshare is welcoming donations of frozen turkeys and nonperishable foods at its warehouses in Bloomfield, Bridgeport, and Wallingford, as well as at several food drives it will host across the state. Residents are also encouraged to make an online monetary donation.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Connecticut Foodshare says food insecurity has grown by an estimated 14% to affect almost half a million people, including 131,000 children.

“For 40 years Foodshare has been a part of the Connecticut community, helping neighbors in need and really filling in the gaps when it comes to food insecurity. The past few pandemic years have been especially bad, and that makes this year’s Thanksgiving turkey drive all the more important,” Sen. Slap said. “It’s a great time of year to share and think of others. So many people are being put to the test right now – physically, mentally and financially – and people can’t deal with those challenges if they’re hungry.”

To learn more about this season’s event, please visit: https://p2p.onecause.com/ctfoodshare-turkeyandthirty/page/faq-contact

Connecticut Foodshare is the food bank serving all of Connecticut; last year, Connecticut Foodshare distributed enough food to provide nearly 47 million meals through a network of more than 700 community-based hunger relief

programs, including food pantries, community kitchens, and emergency shelter. More than 8,000 volunteers work at Connecticut Foodshare giving 62,000 hours of service.