Three Quarters Of Goal Reached For Hoops Against Hunger Food Drive
Published on March 9, 2009 under NBA G League (G League)
Rio Grande Valley Vipers News Release
MCALLEN, TEXAS - The NBA D-League Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Food Bank RGV, Walgreens and BMP Radio announced today they have collected about 1,750 pounds of food in the "Hoops Against Hunger" food drive.
The Vipers have collected 1,623 pounds of food over the course of the first seven home games of the food drive, an average of 232 pounds per game. The original goal was 167 pounds per game, but at the current rate of collection, the Vipers are on pace to collect another 1,160 pounds of food for a projected total of 2,783.
These figures do not include the generous donations being collected at the 17 Walgreens locations around the Rio Grande Valley. Those numbers push "Hoops Against Hunger" past the three-quarter marks.
The goal is to collect at least one ton of non-perishable food items before the Vipers' regular season ends on April 11th. The Vipers have five home games remaining, the next of which is on March 22nd against the Austin Toros at 3:30 p.m. at Dodge Arena in Hidalgo.
"We have seen an incredible rise in our numbers over the last week, thanks in-part to our alumni competition, in-part to donations being collected at Walgreens, and in-part to public service announcements being run on News Talk 710 KURV and ESPN 1240," Vipers President and General Manager Brian Michael Cooper said.
Whether the food is donated at Dodge Arena before any remaining Vipers home game, or at Walgreens, fans can receive one free ticket for every donation of four non-perishable food items for the remainder of the season.
The fan who brings the most non-perishable food items to a game will win an autographed basketball by either Hall-of-Famer and former Houston Rocket Rick Barry or Hall-of-Famer and former San Antonio Spur George "The Iceman" Gervin.
The Food Bank RGV distributes 96,000 meals per week, with two-thirds of those going to children.
"To put that in perspective, that's like taking the entire cities of Harlingen and Weslaco out to dinner every Saturday night," Food and Fund Drive Manager Carter Robinson said.
One out of every five children go to bed hungry in the United States. That number jumps to one in four in Texas and 50% in the Rio Grande Valley.
After Hurricane Dolly hit, the Food Bank RGV distributed over one million pounds (500 tons) of food and water.
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