The Food Bank of the Hudson Valley has announced that IBM in the Mid-Hudson Valley has made a $10,000 donation to assist families facing hunger.

“On behalf of all the IBMers in the region, we’re delighted to make this donation to the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley, which will help provide an amazing 40,000 meals for our neighbors in need,” said Maria Boonie, IBM Senior Location Executive for the Mid-Hudson Valley. “We recognize the importance of addressing food insecurity and hunger in our communities, and I’m so proud of our employees for responding so generously to our ‘Stop the Hunger’ initiative through our annual Employee Charitable Contribution Campaign.”

IBM is celebrating its 80th anniversary of operations in Poughkeepsie this year, and the company and its employees have a rich history of generously supporting many worthy community organizations. The company’s culture of giving continues to attract and inspire employees dedicated to improving the lives of others.

“Since 1990, the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley has provided nutritional food to our member agencies that includes food pantries, homeless shelters, senior centers and many others because of the generosity of our community,” said Sara Gunn, Director of the Food Bank of the Hudson Valley. “In 2019, we provided 16 million pounds of food but in 2020, due to COVID, we provided 22 million pounds of food because of the increased need. We have been able to make such an impact because of donations like this one from IBM.”

According to data from the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization, Feeding America, of which the Food Bank is a member, 1 in 6 Americans face food insecurity due to the COVID-19 pandemic.